


The Ballerina and the Hockey Player

by iwantthemtostay



Category: Figure Skating RPF
Genre: Alternate Universe - Strictly Come Dancing Fusion, F/M, ballerina Tessa, hockey star Scott
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-03-12
Updated: 2018-03-16
Packaged: 2019-03-30 15:23:55
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 7
Words: 34,908
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13954464
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/iwantthemtostay/pseuds/iwantthemtostay
Summary: Ballet royalty has to dance with a hockey hero on Canada's answer to Dancing with the Stars. Their moms think they will find love among the sequins, they're not so sure.*Originally posted on livejournal Summer 2014*





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> I wrote this and put it on the old virtuemoir livejournal in 2014, and I thought people here might like to read it!
> 
> Along with the traditional narrative there are blog posts from two fictional blogs :)

He's late. Tessa cannot abide tardiness. It's rude and it's unprofessional - lessons that have been drilled into her over years of dancing. She finds herself questioning why she is taking part in this ridiculous reality TV show for about the thousandth time (that being a conservative estimate). In the end it had seemed like she hadn't much of a choice. Jeff's guilt-tripping had been very effective ("Tessa, you abandoned our partnership for ballet. Now, here I am with this fantastic opportunity and once again I'm partnerless."). Her mother's even more so with the tears about how Tessa had basically grown up so far away and couldn't she just stay a little while longer and wouldn't it be fun to dance with Jeff again and who knows maybe you might get paired with a nice young man. It had made her head spin. Even her doctor had got in on the act, telling her that a few weeks of ballroom and Latin dance would ease her into training before she could get back to the rigours of full-time ballet. She hadn't really had a say in the matter at all.

The television crew are giving her sympathetic glances as they film her warming up. She had thought that those 'meet your partner' segments were re-enacted but no, apparently her first encounter with the 'celebrity' she is to be partnered with will indeed be filmed. To be fair, Scott Moir is actually famous, seeing as even she recognised his name. Her brothers are going to spontaneously self-combust when they find out that she's dancing with 'the greatest Canadian hockey player of all time', or 'Moir the Machine', or whatever they're calling him nowadays. Her quick research into him had left Tessa unimpressed. Sure, Olympic medals and Stanley Cups and scoring records were all very well but the details of the personal life section of his Wikipedia page left a lot to be desired. Of course, she would be landed with a partner who seemed likely to describe his interests as fast cars and fast women. He was currently out injured because his wrist had been smashed up in some sordid on-ice brawl. She disliked him on principle. With any luck he was going to be a terrible dancer and get thrown out in the first week and then she could just dance with Jeff in the professional dancer numbers.

 

He's late. This is what you get for trying to rescue a puppy from oncoming traffic in downtown Toronto. There are a lot of stairs to this dance studio and he's regretting not taking the elevator. He might be trying to delay the inevitable. He didn't even want to do this stupid show but Charlie White, his agent, was taking it very seriously. Apparently, Scott needed to improve his standing with the older female demographic and with families ("They buy a lot of stuff and advertisers want you to sell stuff" being Charlie's professional opinion). It would also be a great way of getting media experience he was assured which Scott takes to mean that everyone wants to set him up with a job in case his wrist doesn't heal properly. At least his mom is happy about it, she's finally going to get her wish for him to dance and she has some notion that he's going to find true love. He finds this idea unlikely.

It's not as if he's going to have anything in common with this Tessa Virtue. Meryl, the woman in charge of booking the 'celebrities' and, coincidentally he’s sure, Charlie's childhood best friend, had told him his partner's name in hushed, reverent tones as if he had been blessed. Meryl had been disgusted when he asked her, "Who the hell is Tessa Virtue?" According to Google and some weird forums he'd ended up on, she seemed to be the best dancer since Anna Pavlova or whoever they' d last named a dessert after. She'd left Canada to train in Russia in her teens and was now the first non-Russian principal dancer in some famous company. This was apparently all a very big deal as was the fact that she'd become the youngest Giselle on the Russian stage right after graduating from dance school. Funnily enough, the only ballet Scott had ever attended was _Giselle_ ; Charlie had dragged him with him for moral support after Meryl had bought tickets. He had been less than captivated. The forum users were currently freaking out about why she was still in Canada and hadn't returned to Moscow. Had the surgery for her compartment syndrome been unsuccessful? Was she going to dance with the National Ballet of Canada instead? Did it have something to do with the rumours? The commenters were vague on what these rumours actually were though Scott could sniff a scandal. Maybe he'll find out when he meets her.

She turns around immediately when he enters the room. "You're late."

He's taken aback by the coldness in her voice. The fact that Google Images did not do her justice and that she's more devastatingly beautiful than simply gorgeous may also be playing a part in his silence.

"I'm Tessa Virtue." She shakes his hand and they both flinch. If she wasn't looking at him like she couldn't care less about his existence he'd think there had been a spark.

"I'm Scott Moir. I know who you are. You dance with the Bolsheviks." His Russian related humour was fairly limited, even after two weeks spent in Sochi, so he had been proud of that one.

She's looking at him as if he's an idiot. "I dance with the Bolshoi. It's quite different."

"That was a joke. I don't know how well we're going to get along if you don't get my humour," he quips.

"I don't know how well we're going to get along if you don't get the importance of punctuality." There's a touch of acid to her tone. He can hear an audible acknowledgement of the zing of that statement from one of the cameramen who looks simultaneously sympathetic and delighted with the dirt he can provide his overlords with.

"I'm sorry, I was..."

 

Tessa is not a fan of excuses. "It doesn't matter. Don't be late again. We need to get to work. Do you know what a dance hold is like?"

Before she gets a chance to give the detailed instructions she had prepared he clasps one hand in hers and puts the other on her waist. She's about to complain before she registers that he's doing it perfectly. It turns out that his face is more distracting up close.

"Yes. Good. Um, we should probably try a waltz because it might be the most familiar?"

"Do you want to put on some music or should we just dance?" Definitely more distracting up close.

"Yes, music." She backs away and goes to find suitable music on her ipod. She opts for Sibelius' _Valse Triste_. There doesn't seem to be a _Valse I Kind of Hate My Ridiculously Handsome Dance Partner_.

He starts waltzing her around the floor before she can explain anything.

"You're leading me," she blurts out.

"Isn't that my job?"

"I wasn't expecting you to be this good."

"Maybe you should raise your expectations of people." He spins her around. "Actually, maybe don't. It's just a waltz, Tessa. Aren't people born knowing how to do that?"

She is not going to think about the way he says her name. "I'm not so sure. All the professional dancers were given instructions about how to teach really basic steps. Have you much dance experience?"

He laughs, "None. My mom wanted me to be an ice dancer though. She made me do a ton of tryouts."

"My mom wanted me to be a skater too. I had an ice dance tryout once but I never told her about it." 

"You prefer dancing on solid ground?"

"Something like that." She had actually liked the dancing on ice part fine, the boy she was dancing with had been the problem.

The music stops and they stand there in each other's arms.

"So, should we do that again?"

She lets go of his hand. This closeness is becoming a bit overwhelming.

"We should probably go. I think someone else is using the space after us. I'll see you tomorrow."

"I'll be on time."

He leaves, followed by the camera crew, and Tessa is left to gather her things.

She's locking the door behind her when a petite brunette appears beside her.

"Hi! I'm Meryl, Meryl Davis. I'm with the production company? I just came to see if everything had gone okay."

"You're the one who has been sending me all the nice emails! I'm Tessa Virtue." Tessa smiles warmly at her.

"I know. I'm a big fan," Meryl blushes.

"Well, I'm a big fan of yours. I especially liked the videos of the cute puppies that you sent."

"Oh, that was an accident! My boss was not happy. Apparently not everyone likes puppies."

"I bet Scott Moir doesn't like puppies." She has no proof of this but is suitably annoyed by this afternoon's events to attribute such a crime to him.

"It went that badly?"

"I now understand what it means to be driven to drink. You don't happen to have any alcohol on you, do you?"

"No, but I do know a really good cocktail bar near here."

"Oh, you probably have something better to be doing than hear me complain about hockey players."

"When I said that I was a big fan I meant that I'm the kind of fan who has having a drink with Tessa Virtue on their bucket list."

Tessa almost wants to cry but she opts for just squeezing Meryl's arm instead. "That's the nicest thing I've heard all day."

So that is how, after a quick change of outfit, Tessa finds herself getting very tipsy while telling Meryl all about her opinions on men who make too much money.

"They just take whatever they want! They expect you to give them everything! They show up late! I told you how late he was! And he's just so..."

"Talkative?" Meryl has met Scott because she's best friends with his agent.

"Yes, but..."

"Full of himself?"

"More than likely, but..."

"Likely to defend his teammates with his fists and/or hockey stick?"

"Infuriatingly attractive!" She has it.

Meryl squishes her face into an odd expression. "Really?"

"Definitely. That's what was so irritating. I couldn't even talk to him properly. Sorry, I can barely talk properly now. I haven't been drinking in a while. I was on all these painkillers after the surgery and before the surgery and..."

"How are you now?"

"My legs are fine. I should go freshen up. I'll be back in a minute."

 

Scott doesn't know why Charlie is taking him to a cocktail bar.

"Meryl says it's great," his friend insists as they go in.

"She likes it so much she's here right now." He points to where Meryl is seated in a booth. Charlie bounds up to sit beside her and Scott slides in to the seat opposite.

"I want to complain to whoever put me with that dancer, Meryl. She may be the be all and end all ballet-wise but she needs to work on her friendliness. She's all aloof and she did not take well to my jokes," he adopts a high-pitched voice which sounds nothing like Tessa's actual one, which, if he thinks about it for too long, is actually really pretty, "I dance with the Bolshoi. It's quite different".

Meryl and Charlie both look like they're about to say something, but he's in rant mode. "She practically threw me out of the place! She's an ice queen, an actual ice queen."

His friends, well, Charlie is his friend anyway, have the weirdest expressions on their faces. He looks over his shoulder to find none other than Tessa Virtue.

"I was talking about... I'm sorry..."

She holds her hand up to stop him. "Meryl, it's been lovely but I just missed a call from my mom and I have to ring her back. I wouldn't want her to think that I'm a cold, unfeeling bitch. You must be Charlie, it's very nice to meet you. Scott, I will see you tomorrow, on time."

She glides away.

"She looks like that too, which is a different kind of problem. " He drops his head on the table.

"Go after her," Meryl hisses.

"She doesn't want to talk to me! It didn't even seem to bother her that much."

"You didn't see her face when she was behind you. She was about to cry." Charlie looks pretty sad himself.

Scott takes off but Tessa is nowhere to be seen. He returns and shakes his head.

"If you have ruined my chance of friendship with the Tessa Virtue, incomparable dancer and bringer of light into a dark world, I will cry. Or hurt you. Or cry and hurt you," Meryl informs him.

"You be nice to her from now on," Charlie waves his finger at him.

This could be a long evening.

 

He's barely in the door of his apartment when his mom rings. "Scott! How did your rehearsal go? Can you tell me who you're dancing with yet?"

"I didn't make the best impression."

He does not want to have to tell her the whole story.

"Were you late? You never do make good impressions on girls you dance with. That one time when I finally thought I had found you an ice dance partner but you more or less flung her into the boards... She was such a lovely little skater and then she went off to be a ballerina. I'd say it was a waste, but she's doing so well for herself over in Russia."

How many Canadian girls who had ice dance tryouts go off to become ballerinas in Russia? "What was her name?"

"How many times do I tell you about her but you never listen?! Tessa Virtue! Her older sister was friends with your cousin. She had such nice hair all in pigtails, which of course you pulled, and she was wearing this pink tutu. I think she's back in Canada at the minute, maybe she could dance with you if this doesn't work out."

"She is dancing with me. I think she might hate me." He's shell-shocked.

"What?!!! Oh my God! It's a sign! You two were destined to dance together! Maybe you're destined to be together! I did say you could find the love of your life!" He worries that his mother is delusional.

She's still talking. "I wonder if I still have her mom's number. Maybe your aunt will have it. We should have a big get together! You two can get to know each other better!" She keeps going.

 

So that is how Scott finds himself driving to Ilderton on Friday night for a dinner with the Moir and Virtue families. The past few days of rehearsals have gone slightly better. He hasn't done anything to offend her although that might be because they're not really talking, just dancing. Scott quite likes the dancing part. They've been told that they will be performing the tango for the first show. Tessa's clipped reaction was that this was for the best seeing as the tango was a dance of tension. There is a lot of tension. He thinks she might have been right in having low expectations of him, he's finding all these new steps very difficult but, despite all her coldness, Tessa is unnervingly patient. He's not sure if her music choice is a good idea, she's gone for a traditional tango piece by some Argentinean while he thinks they should just dance the tango to some pop song that people actually know. She had just raised her eyebrows at him and sighed when he had mentioned this as if he'd offended her artistic integrity or something. He does not know how she's going to get along with his family but he's about to find out.

"You're late," his mom tells him when she answers the door.

"I had to drive all the way from Toronto!"

"So did Tessa and she was here on time, with a gift I might add."

"You're my parents! Since when do I have to bring a gift when I come for dinner?!"

"Stop your whining and come meet Kate and Jim."

Tessa's parents are warm and friendly and he's beginning to wonder where they got her from until he goes into the sitting room. There is Tessa looking perfectly at home wedged in between his two brothers and laughing (she can do that it turns out) at all the right places while listening to one of their god-awful longwinded stories. He stands in the doorframe, slack-jawed, for about two minutes before Charlie notices him.

"Scotty! You've been holding back on us. You never told us how pretty she is."

Tessa nearly chokes on her white wine before composing herself. "Maybe Scott doesn't think I'm pretty."

She's right, pretty doesn't cut it. "Just because I don't say something doesn't mean I'm not thinking it."

"With you it kind of does," Danny shrugs.

"You've been very open about some of your other opinions about me," Tessa nods.

"That's another thing you got wrong. She's definitely not an ice queen." Charlie shakes his head at him.

"Not cold at all," Danny adds.

"We didn't raise him like that, Tessa. I want you to know that." He doesn't know when he last saw Charlie look this serious.

"He went off to be a big hockey star. It changes people," Danny says solemnly.

"We could try to put him on the right path again."

"Maybe he needs the love of a good woman."

Both of his brothers look at Tessa expectantly.

Thankfully, his mom calls them into the kitchen for dinner before he has to hear what Tessa's response to that statement would have been.

She continues to charm all members of his family during dinner to the point where he's fairly sure they all like her more than him. He doesn't blame them. He may have got her all wrong. This Tessa is warm and sweet and impossible to dislike. She even insists on doing the dishes which his mom surprisingly agrees to. She offers his services as helper so he figures this is her matchmaking ploy. Nothing is more romantic than dirty dishes.

"You didn't have to," he says awkwardly as he watches her scrub the casserole dish.

"It was the least I could do! Your mom worked so hard and everyone was so friendly... I quite like cleaning anyway." She smiles at him as she hands him the dish to dry and it feels like a peace offering. "It's therapeutic. You can just rub away all the mess."

"Like having a brand new start."

"Exactly. We could probably do with one of those."

"I'm sorry," they say together.

"I shouldn't have been late," he begins.

"I heard that you rescued a puppy!"

"I had to. It was wandering in front of all the traffic."

"I like puppies."

"So we do have something in common," he grins.

"I over-reacted. I had all these preconceived ideas of what you were going to be like and I just ran with them. I was really cold. I've been anxious about all of this and sometimes when I worry too much I get reserved and kind of shut down."

"I should never have said what I did. I had all these ideas of what a ballerina was going to be like too, all snooty and self-important, and I think they got the best of me. You're not like that at all."

"You aren't who I thought you'd be either." She absentmindedly puts a strand of hair behind her ear, getting suds all over the side of her face in the process.

"Here, let me." He dries it off with the dishcloth.

"Do you two need any help?" Tessa's mom sees them and smiles. "Never mind! You two just carry on!"

"That was the worst possible moment for her to come in," Tessa sighs. "She has this idea that we're going to fall madly in love."

"My mom too. That's another thing we have in common."

"As well as our failed ice dance tryout. My mom rang me after your mom told her about it and she freaked out for a solid hour."

"It is kind of crazy though. Maybe this is our second chance."

"We should make the most of it," she vows.

"If we're to make the most of it I will need to know those steps. Would you mind going over them again?"

"Of course not! I need the practice, I haven't done this in years. I'm torturing Jeff with extra rehearsals. You're probably at a huge disadvantage with me as your partner."

"You can't mess with fate, Tessa," he tells her as she folds into him.

Her eyes sparkle. They start to dance.

**************************************************************

BLADE BROTHERS

_Scott Moir... Dancing?_

Sorry we don't have any video of this activity but it's only a matter of time. We hear that Moir, the hardy Canadian who never says no to a fight to protect the honour of his team, is to put on his dancing shoes for a reality TV show. We don't know what to think either. Here's hoping this doesn't mean that his wrist is too damaged to continue working that Moir magic.

We're also hoping that he's paired with a total babe. Then we might watch.

(You know we're going to be watching anyway. Scott Moir dancing? Get the popcorn ready)

 

 

*********************************************************************

BALLET IN THE BLOOD

Tessa Virtue on TV??? We know this isn't strictly ballet, but if it concerns the Queen we think it's relevant. According to our sources Tessa Virtue is to take part in the upcoming reality TV series _Strictly Come Dancing_ (of course the Canadians would follow the Brits with their name choice. They're too classy for _Dancing with the Stars_ ). Our girl was once a champion ballroom dancer with none other than world champion Jeffrey Buttle (his current partner, Joannie Rochette, is injured so that might explain why Tessa has been drafted in) before she chose ballet. *Moment of thanks.* If you haven't checked out the videos of Baby Tessa and Baby Jeff then you are in for a treat.

This news would provide a reason for why she is still in Canada and hasn't hightailed it back to Moscow yet. We're not going to lie, we were beginning to worry about whether that surgery had worked. We were never onboard with the idea that she was jumping ship to the National Ballet of Canada, but for a different reason than many. Some of you think they might be harbouring resentment but we’re of the opinion that they'd welcome their erstwhile student back with open arms, the former director of teaching, Marina Zueva, who stole her off to Russia as soon as she got the job in Moscow, not so much. In our minds Tessa has unfinished business at the Bolshoi and isn't going to return to her first home until that's done.

What do you think of this development? We at _Ballet in the Blood_ are divided. Should we just be excited to see her in a new way or should we turn up our noses at the idea of the Queen teaching a peasant how to dance? On that note, which mere mortal will be lucky enough to be paired with such a goddess of dance? All will be revealed on Canadian breakfast show _Good Morning Canada_ next week.


	2. Chapter 2

"Tessa, it's time to get up."

"But it's so early," Tessa yawns. She rubs her eyes and sees Kaitlyn bearing a mug of coffee.

"Andrew made breakfast!" Kaitlyn is so happy all the time. How can she be happy at five am?

"But it's so early." Tessa is not a morning person, though she's of the opinion that this is still the middle of the night. "Why do we have to go in so early?"

"It's a morning TV show. It's in the morning. We're going to get our hair and make-up done. It will be fun!"

Nothing this early is fun. Something this late could be classified as fun but this, this is not fun. Last night had been fun. She and Kaitlyn had tried on just about every item of clothing either of them owned as they searched for the perfect outfits for the reveal of the _Strictly Come Dancing_ cast on _Good Morning Canada_. Andrew had cooked them dinner and they had drunk a bottle of wine (in retrospect, maybe not the best call). Kaitlyn and Andrew were most definitely the best roommates she had ever had, even if they did like mornings.

Andrew presents her with some oatmeal when she makes it into the kitchen but she waves him away. Kaitlyn hands her a chocolate bar as they make their way to the parking lot.

"That's not a breakfast food!" Andrew admonishes.

"Chocolate is appropriate for any meal," Kaitlyn retorts. Tessa nods sagely as they bundle her into the car. She wakes up when it comes to a stop to find herself sprawled over the backseat with the chocolate half-eaten in her hand.

"Rise and shine, sleeping beauty!" Scott has opened the car door and is holding out his hand.

"Are you a morning person too?" She nearly falls over when stumbling out of the car, but he holds her up.

"Best part of the day!"

"I thought we were going to be friends," she murmurs into his shoulder as he leads her into the building which holds the television studio.

"Oh, we are. What about those two," he points ahead to where Kaitlyn and Andrew are all but skipping hand-in-hand, "are they friends or are they something more?"

"They say they're platonic. I don't know if they exactly get the meaning of the word though. I've been platonic with everyone that I've danced with and we didn't gaze at each other adoringly or wander around holding hands." She's suddenly aware that walking around with your dance partner's arm wrapped around you (even if it just to keep you standing straight) doesn't exactly fit in with her definition of platonic either.

"You were never involved with anyone you've danced with?"

"No, too messy. I like to keep things separate. I have a rule." Did that sound really pointed or is it just her? They need a new subject. "Would you like a square of chocolate?"

"I don't have much of a sweet tooth."

She shrugs off his arm and turns to stare at him. "I don't trust people like you. We definitely can't be friends."

"But it's to your advantage. This way I won't steal any of your sweets and you can eat all of mine as well."

"I'll take that into consideration." She sees a figure who looks just as morose about the early start as she does.

"Jeff!"

He throws his arms around her. "Tess, this is inhuman what they're doing to us. I'm so sorry for roping you in."

"I might forgive you someday." She introduces her dance partners old and new.

"So you're the hockey player. Tessa has issues about your type but she seems very taken with you."

She glares at Jeff, she may have revealed a little too much to him of her thoughts on the fine specimen of manhood that was Scott Moir.

"I don't know about that. We didn't exactly hit it off but I'm on my best behaviour now."

"I'm going to warn you now. She's a heartbreaker. The only girl to break my heart in fact when she dumped me to be a ballerina."

"I didn't dump you! Anyway, I found you a new partner and Joannie is a much better ballroom dancer than I ever would have been. Now, I have to make myself presentable."

"You might need these." She turns to see Scott holding the garment bag containing her outfit. She hadn't even realised he'd been carrying it.

"Thank you. I'll see you soon."

 

Scott turns to find that Jeff is no longer smiling at him but is instead staring at him intently, as if he's measuring him.

"I don't have to worry about you, do I?" Jeff's voice is calm but deadly serious.

"Worry about what?"

"You know what. I've heard about your... reputation." Scott wants to interrupt because he thinks this 'reputation' is wildly exaggerated but he doesn't want to get on the wrong side of him. "Tessa is the strongest person I know, but she's been through a lot recently and she doesn't need to be messed around."

"I'm not going to mess her around," Scott promises.

"Good." Jeff claps him on the back and they head off to get ready for their TV appearance, apparently now friends.

He's chatting with one of his new competitors, Patrick Chan, a figure skater he met in Sochi, when he sees her. She's wearing this red dress with cut-outs and he's reconsidering every thought he's had about what a terrible idea it would be to get involved with your dance partner.

"You hit the jackpot in the partner department," Patrick observes.

"She's a wonderful dancer."

Patrick raises his eyebrows at him. "Sure, that's what I was talking about. My partner's great too, but she's dating her professional partner." He gestures over to where Kaitlyn is playing with Andrew's hair.

"They're not actually dating."

"Really? That's interesting..."

Tessa appears in front of them. "You look fantastic," he tells her.

She tilts her head to the side. "So he does give compliments. You don't look too bad yourself."

Patrick cuts in. "You look beautiful. It's a privilege to meet you, I'm ..."

"Oh, of course I know who you are!" Tessa gushes. "I ran off the stage so I could watch you perform during the Olympics. We were doing _Swan Lake_ and lots of feathers fell off my costume. The costume ladies were not impressed. "

"I wish I could have given a performance more worthy of your interest," Patrick sighs. Scott feels like gagging.

"Oh, even with the fall it was wonderful! You are such an artist on ice."

"I could never come close to the incredible artistry of your work. I'm a huge fan." Scott is both disgusted and impressed. The kid has game.

Tessa just blushes and then Kaitlyn calls Patrick over. "She probably wants to fix your hair," Tessa informs him, "she didn't like the way they did Andrew's at all."

"Are you ready for the interview?" he asks her after Patrick is gone.

"I'm really nervous. I wish it were in Russian."

"You what?!"

"No one expects me to say anything impressive or charming so they're blown away by anything I string together. This one mightn't be so bad. The presenter seems really friendly."

Scott clears his throat. "Just to warn you, she might not be so friendly towards me."

"Why?" A look of realisation crosses her face. "Scott, you didn't break her heart, did you?"

"You can't break someone's heart after one night. I told her I wasn't going to call her back so I don't know why she's still mad."

"You told her you weren't going to call her back?" she echoes.

"I was heading back to Pittsburgh and she was in Toronto. Nothing was going to come of it. I'm all about honesty."

"So I've learned," Tessa says drily. "Maybe she's forgiven you too."

With the amount of delight that Cassandra takes in showing the footage of Tessa dressing him down the first time they met he's fairly certain that she hasn't. He isn't that bothered with the whole of Canada thinking that he's an idiot but Tessa seems worried.

"I promise I'm not usually like that!" she groans after the video is shown and the studio bursts into laughter.

"She's incredibly kind and patient. I think she might have been having a traumatic reaction to an incident from her past. We actually had an ice dance tryout as kids."

"So I've heard," Cassandra purrs, "your mom actually sent us a picture taken on that day."

"A picture?" they both exclaim. They turn around to the big screen on the studio wall to see a photograph of a boy in a Canada jersey and a girl in a pink tutu reluctantly holding hands. It's undoubtedly them.

"Scott, I think you looked better back then. Tessa, you are as pretty as ever but you had to have been the most adorable little girl. I love the pigtails."

"That was the first day I managed to do them by myself! I was so proud and then Scott went and pulled them! You were, what, nine? You should have been passed that stage."

"I didn't want to be an ice dancer and I was tired of skating with girls who couldn't keep up with me."

"I was more than capable of keeping up with you!"

"Yeah, I didn't like that either." This draws more laughter from the studio and he can't help but think that they're coming across very well together.

"Moving on to more recent events, I'm sure we're all sick and tired of hearing about Scott's wrist injury but Tessa, you've had some injury troubles as well."

"Yes, I had a lot of problems with my legs, basically to do with overexertion."

"Is it true you were unable to walk at some points?"

Tessa all but shrugs, "Well, before the surgery I had to ration the amount of walking I did so that I could manage the pain when I danced. Then afterwards I wasn't able to walk for a while but it wasn't for too long."

He might be open-mouthed at this point. Cassandra says slowly, "You're such an inspiration. And to think that your reward after all that is to dance with Scott Moir."

Tessa laughs, "That sounds like what my brothers said when they found out I was dancing with Scott. It's been great so far, he's easing me in before I go back to ballet."

"Better you than me! There you have it, the ballerina and the hockey player who missed out on their chance to dance together all those years ago. How far will they go in Strictly Come Dancing? All will be revealed starting this Saturday."

 

*************************

BALLET IN THE BLOOD

_Good Morning Canada!_

Canada had an exceptionally good morning if you ask me. If you, like me and unlike my fellow bloggers, had nothing pressing to do this morning, you may have basked in the glow of Tessa Virtue and a variety of other dancers and celebrities (some more famous than others) being revealed as the stars of _Strictly Come Dancing_. If you were unable to watch the gloriousness, never fear - I have you covered. If you have a lot of time on your hands you may read my comprehensive liveblog of this morning's show, it includes a review of all of the presenters' outfits (Dear weather lady, all over leopard print is not classy and I will hold it against you), a discussion of the jam-making segment (the gooseberry one looked delicious but do people want to think about making preserves at this time of the day?) and a lengthy meditation on the bad things I would do to Argentine Tango world champion Andrew Pojé (bad, bad things). For those of you who are not interested in such subjects/have lives I have prepared an account of the most important part of the show: the interview with Tessa and her dance partner. Watch the video and then read my thoughts.

\- IT'S SCOTT MOIR!! He of the famous hockey playing and the great face and the (rumoured) getting around and the hot body and did I mention the great face? In all seriousness though, did they just put the two most attractive people together? They're gorgeous separately, but together? Have a glass of water. They were born in towns really close to one another! Friends, I am moving to Ontario.

-How amazing did Tessa look? That red dress! It was so great to see her looking so healthy and happy. We've talked before about our worries about her appearance before she took time off for her surgery, she was almost painfully thin and very tired looking. We don't know whether that was due to pain, exhaustion, or stress about that whole situation, but it doesn't matter, we were quite frankly a little bit scared. So it made me so happy to see her looking so well and so relaxed (have you ever seen her so comfortable in an interview setting with someone not in the business? Does Scott Moir relax her? hehehe).

-The clip of their first (this time around, more of which later) meeting was one of the greatest pieces of television I have ever seen. How dare he be late for the Queen? How fantastic was her response? I'm not going to lie, I actually enjoyed the Bolshevik/Bolshoi joke, but I'm a big fan of communism humour. Tessa was too cute when she started freaking out after they showed it and Scott just jumped in telling everyone how wonderful she is. I know he's meant to be a bit of a ladies' man but he's such a sweetheart! Their banter is so effortless and rom-com-esque and I kind of want them to fall madly in love.

-THEY HAD AN ICE DANCE TRY OUT AS KIDS. What is life? They are clearly meant to dance together (and do other stuff together). That picture of the two of them... I squealed. If you haven't been stalking Kaitlyn Weaver's instagram (what have you been doing with your life?) go check it out because she has a picture of Tessa and Scott re-enacting said snap with the earlier photograph in the background and matching expressions on their faces. There's also loads of adorable shots of her and Tessa as well as her and newfound love of my life Andrew. If she isn't hitting that then she isn't worthy of her roles as Tessa's BFF and his dance partner and I will fulfil them gladly.

-Um, we didn't get to see them actually dance? What is wrong with you, Canadian morning TV producers? How are we meant to wait until Saturday? I know from reading this you may think my only interests in life are Andrew Pojé and wanting Tessa and Scott to be together (I hear the young folk call it shipping), but I really just want to watch some dancing.

*************************

 

Tessa has been a nervous babbler before performances since her first dance recital when she couldn't make the 's' sound and had informed her teacher that she was "thcared." She finds out that this nervous babbling extends to reality dance shows.

They're waiting to go on and she's pacing back and forth. "You're going to be great, you know that? I'm so proud of you. You were good at the beginning but you've improved so much. Everyone's going to love you."

Scott looks worried. "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine. I talk a lot before I perform. Vygotsky said that self talk was helpful for children. He died young. So sad. I did a psychology degree, have I told you that? It was online. I finished it when I was out having my surgery. My dad wanted me to have something to do after dancing but I think I want to choreograph and teach. I'm doing an alright job with you, aren't I?"

"You're doing a wonderful job." He envelops her in his arms. "Just breathe, Tessa."

And she does. Her breathing slows to match his and she thinks that even their heartbeats find a common rhythm. She feels safe, just like she did at her first dance recital when her teacher told her that it was okay to be scared because she could just dance her fears away. It's what she's been doing ever since.

The nerves return after the music stops and they have to face the judges. Tessa hasn't faced this kind of inquisition in a long time. It reminds her of an audition and she hasn't had to audition for anything in years. Scott puts his arm around her as they walk over to greet the presenter, Patrice Lauzon.

"What a fantastic performance! Who knew hockey players could dance? Now, we'll find out what our judges have to say. We'll start with Jayne."

Jayne Torvill was one half of arguably the best ballroom dance pair of all time along with one of her fellow judges, Christopher Dean. She smiles and Tessa's nerves begin to settle.

"This was very impressive for a first dance. You captured the character of the dance perfectly. I loved that you went with authentic tango music in 'Adios Nonino'.

At this point one of the other judges, choreographer Nikolai Morozov, cuts in, "I disagree. I think the performance would have been much more appealing if you had gone with a more recognisable, popular song."

Christopher Dean rolls his eyes, "What is wrong with you? The music choice was perfect. The chemistry between the two of you was palpable. It's really remarkable seeing as you've only been dancing together for such a short space of time. I'm looking forward to seeing how you progress as the show goes on. I've a feeling we'll be seeing a lot more of you."

"Well, we've had our first judges' argument! Scott and Tessa, go on up to Marie-France and wait for your scores!" Patrice grins.

They go up the stairs, hand in hand, to where the rest of their competitors are assembled along with the other presenter, Marie-France Dubreuil.

"Well done Scott and Tessa!" Marie-France claps. "Tessa, we saw in the clip before your dance that you and Scott didn't exactly bond on your first meeting. You two seem much closer now, what's changed?"

"We like each other now which helps," Tessa smiles. "I think we just needed a chance to get to know each other."

"You two certainly seem to be getting along well now. Scott, what did you think of the judges' comments?"

"They seemed pretty positive which is great. I disagree with Nikolai though, Tessa did a great job with picking the music."

The scores come in, an eight from Jayne, a seven from Christopher and a six from Nikolai.

 

Scott reveals his displeasure to Tessa when they're standing in the hallway after the show has finished taping. "A six? Our dance was way better than all the ones he gave higher marks to!"

"I guess he really didn't like the music, which, by the way, you definitely changed your tune on."

He shrugs defensively, "It grew on me. Anyway, we're a team and I always defend my teammates."

"Are you going to beat him up for me now?" She raises her eyebrows.

"If you want me to. I think the reason he marked us low is because you were wearing too many clothes."

"I was what?!"

"That's what he thought! I think you are wearing the perfect amount of clothes, lovely clothes in fact. I just noticed that he marked all the couples doing Latin dances with girls wearing, um, shorter dresses higher."

Tessa looks like she is taking this under careful consideration and then a look of disgust crosses her face. "You're right. Ugh, I thought I was going to get a break from Russian sleazebags."

"Are the Russians sleazier than other nationalities?"

"No, I just seem to come across the worst kinds." Her face brightens, "We're doing salsa next week so I'll be wearing something skimpy."

He swallows. "If you think that's best. I wouldn't want you to do anything you're not comfortable with."

She grins at him wickedly, "I won't be the only one. You can wear a low-cut shirt, give the people what they want. I wouldn't mind a look at those famous abs myself."

He feels his mouth open and close like a fish. Meryl swoops in before he has to say anything.

"Oh my God, you guys were amazing!!! Scott, you can actually dance! Tessa, you were fabulous as ever! Charlie is really excited, he was texting me non-stop." Her phone buzzes and she grimaces at it. "I'm trying to work! Anyhow, he wants to congratulate you. Also, he had a lot to say about a certain dancer. Tessa, what do you think about Tanith?"

"Tanith Belbin? She's a sweetheart. Jeff and I actually competed against her and Ben as kids. I used to have the biggest crush on Ben. The only argument of my mom's that made me reconsider giving up ballroom was that I might never see him again." Scott is not loving the nostalgic look on Tessa's face.

Meryl looks ecstatic with this revelation. "This could be your chance! This is too perfect. Charlie is apparently besotted with Tanith so I can set you four up on a double date!"

"That's a bad idea," Scott intervenes. "Tessa doesn't date people she dances with."

"I don't see her dancing with Ben, do you?"

Why does Meryl always make such good points? "We're competing against him! It would be a terrible idea. Right?"

"Right," Tessa agrees.

"I am in this to win it," he proclaims.

"Good," she grins.

"We're going to need to work on a handshake."

"Seriously Scott, a handshake?"

"Yes! Why, do ballerinas not do handshakes?" She rolls her eyes at him but she nevertheless spends the next ten minutes trying to create and perfect a signature handshake. He thinks that they make a good team.

*************************

BLADE BROTHERS

_Scott Moir (Nearly) Tangos to the Top_

So it turns out the boy wonder from Ilderton can actually dance. Wonders never cease. We, with our vast knowledge of dance, are of the opinion that Moir was robbed of his rightful place on top of the _Strictly Come Dancing_ leaderboard. We place the blame firmly on Russian judge Nikolai Morozov (he once choreographed a music video for Paris Hilton, the guy has questionable taste) who seemed to be giving higher marks to performances involving more minimal amounts of clothing. We're not saying that we wouldn't be interested in seeing Tessa Virtue wearing a shorter skirt or whatever but we don't think the fact that she was fully clothed should be held against her. She looks pretty great fully clothed.

Talking about Tessa, we got a few complaints about our discussion of their interview on Good Morning Canada (we just happened to catch it). We were joking when we said "Who does she think she is?" after she gave Scott grief for being late. We are aware that she's fairly useful at that ballet thing and that she's a total badass (compartment syndrome sounds nasty). We also get that famous hockey players can be dicks and are always happy to see them get called out on it, especially by women who look like that. Also, we're not so sure about those objections to our "objectification" of Tessa. The ballet blog that particular message came from spent a lot of time objectifying a certain professional dancer plus one of their most popular posts is entitled "Which Ballet Boy Got A Booty?" So, you know, pot kettle black.

Anyway, the results show is tomorrow and as the Mighty Moir is part of the hockey brethren you might want to give him a vote. We might have called, texted, and voted online. We just really like Tessa, okay?


	3. Chapter 3

Scott has conflicting emotions about the salsa. They're dancing to Santana's 'Black Magic Woman' which he likes, but he's not entirely sure it fulfils Nikolai's demands for something more modern and popular. It's one of his mom's favourites. On the positive side, the salsa appears to involve Tessa swaying and sashaying all around him which he has few problems with. As an admirer of dance it is aesthetically pleasing, he does not have any kind of pesky attraction towards his dance partner which could derail their chances of winning. Not at all. On the not so positive side, Tessa's swaying and sashaying is pretty distracting and he's finding all these Latin movements difficult enough as it is. The camera men are laughing at him and now even Tessa is giggling. 

"That is not supportive teamwork," he grumbles.

"I'm sorry." Her face is sincere. "It's just... your hips. They're so wooden and jerky."

Tessa then proceeds to move her hips back and forth in the most unnatural manner. It's bizarre because her every movement is usually so fluid and graceful. It takes him a few seconds to realise that she's doing an impression of him. The crew are now in hysterics and he has joined in with the laughter.

He eventually lets out an exasperated "What can I do?"

She grabs his hands. "You just need to relax and feel the music. You have a natural rhythm and you just need to let that show."

He thinks his facial expression should tell her that he believes this is easier said than done.

"Feel the way that I move mine."

Tessa is no longer facing him. Her back is leaning against his chest and their bodies are completely in line with one another's. There is now no space between them. He doesn't have time to decide if this is good or bad because she has firmly placed his hands on her hips, the hips which she has slowly started to circle around and around. His body follows hers as if on instinct. He tries not to lose himself in this, tries to remember all the reasons why that would be a terrible idea - Tessa probably has no interest in him, she has rules about dating people she dances with, the competition, there are people present...

"Tessa, there are cameras here!" He's whispering this into her neck. He doesn't even know he got there. It's as if his face is magnetically drawn to this certain spot.

She bursts into that huge laugh of hers, the one that ricochets off the mirrors which wall the dance studio. She collapses into him and he all but has to hold her up.

"Don't worry," she wheezes, "I'm not trying to seduce you. You'd know about it if that was happening."

He doesn't have any kind of appropriate response to make to this revelation so he just suggests that they return to working on improving his hip action. To make his dancing better.

Scott thinks that all that work must have paid off as the judges compliment him on his natural hip movement (he sees Tessa smirk at this) and reward them with straight eights, leaving them on top of the leaderboard. They make a big deal about the "steaminess" of the dance, whatever that is supposed to mean. It was just him and Tessa dancing. When they meet their moms for dinner after the show they too seem taken with the allegedly less than PG nature of the performance.

"There was this very... sexual energy between you," his mom announces as she drains her wineglass.

Kate nods seriously while he and Tessa spit out their drinks in unison.

"It's a good thing your father didn't come with me. It wasn't like that when you danced with Jeff."

"I was eleven when I stopped dancing with Jeff!! Of course it wasn't as... as mature."

"It's not like that when you dance with him now." Kate raises her eyebrows.

"I have that effect on all women," Scott offers."They just can't control themselves around me."

Tessa laughs in that special way and he is both delighted and slightly offended.

Her mom is staring at them, "I have never heard you laugh like that."

"Of course you have!" Tessa bristles.

"No, you have a special Scott laugh," Kate says gleefully. His own mom claps her hands.

He smiles. Tessa blushes.

 

"You have a special laugh just for me," Scott croons as he hands her a cup of coffee when she arrives at the dance studio. It's now Monday morning and he's still going on about what her mom said on Saturday night.

"You really need to move on from that. Yes, I find you amusing."

"Look at us now! You think I'm funny; I'm on time. We get along so well. Maybe our dance partnership was meant to be."

She rolls her eyes at him as she begins to stretch.

"What is that?!" Scott has an expression of shock on his face and is pointing at her abdomen.

Briefly concerned, she looks down to find that her shirt has hitched up and he's just talking about her belly button piercing.

"Your reaction is just like my mom's was." Minus the wailing about how she should never have let her go to Russia and the threats about being grounded which Tessa had secretly loved because it made her feel immediately at home.

"It just doesn't seem very... you."

"Ice queens don't get their belly buttons pierced?" she asks with faux innocence. She puts her hand over his mouth before he starts to apologise about that again. "Anyway, we need to start working on the charleston."

"What is your master plan for this routine?"

"I don't exactly have one yet. Jeff and I never competed it. It's not even a proper certified ballroom or Latin dance!" Her voice gets a bit shrill.

Scott shrugs, "It will be fine. We can just do jazz hands!"

"No jazz hands." Tessa does not do jazz hands.

"You seem weirdly opposed to that idea."

She scrambles, "I'm just worried that they might hurt your wrist. How is it now?"

"Jazz hands aren't going to do it any damage. I don't have any pain now. I'm working on getting back the full range of motion, so lots of physio and practice."

"When are you doing all that?" They spend an awful lot of time together so she thinks she should have noticed this.

"In the morning. The rink is practically deserted at five am."

She grimaces at the thought of it.

"It's the best time to be there! It's just you and the ice. It's so peaceful and, I don't know, hopeful or something." His face is so boyishly enthusiastic and it's five times more adorable than the video with the dancing puppies that Meryl had sent her yesterday. She lowers her head so he can't see the ridiculous grin that she can feel developing across her face and somehow finds herself taking his wrist gently in her hand and tracing the tiny scar that marks it.

"How is it all going?"

"I'm about 98% there. It's just that the last 2% is the most important - the lightning quick reactions, the deftness of touch."

She sighs, "It's scary isn't it, when your body can't do what it used to, the thing you most need it to."

"It is, but you made it through." He says this so softly and reassuringly, as if to remind her that she's better now and that everything will be okay.

She kisses his wrist. "You will too."

He hugs her just like he does before they perform, but she doesn't know if this is for his benefit or for hers. She thinks there's probably not much of a difference. Not for the first time she considers how perfectly they seem to fit.

"Thank you," he whispers into her ear before letting her go. "Seriously though, what is your problem with jazz hands?"

"I can't do them," she admits. "I've never been able to. I did tap when I was little and the routine in our showcase involved jazz hands. The whole audience laughed at me."

"I'm sure they weren't laughing at you."

She answers him by making an attempt at the stupid action.

He stares before doubling over, howling with laughter.

"Thank you so much for bringing back all my childhood trauma!"

"I'm sorry... It's just... I can't believe there's a dance move that I can perform better than you can."

"Jazz hands are not a dance move!" she explodes. "They are just a frenzied shaking."

"Of course." He's nodding solemnly but his eyes are still laughing.

"If you like jazz hands so much maybe you should find yourself a partner who can do them!"

"No." He shakes his head, all of a sudden completely serious. "I don't want to dance with anyone else."

 

However, Scott finds himself in such an unpleasant situation the next week when the remaining contestants have to perform a group dance as well as an individual one. He's fine with the start and end of the routine when he's dancing with Tessa, but he does not approve of the partner switch that occurs in the middle section. He has to dance with Kaitlyn and Tessa with Patrick. To make matters worse Patrick and Kaitlyn were the ones to beat them to the top of the leaderboard last week. They seem to be always doing the same dance and their charleston had outscored Scott and Tessa's by one mark. Scott was blaming Nikolai again, he had thought that their music choice of 'Won't You Charleston with Me?' was "obscure" ("Just because he's never heard it doesn't mean that it's obscure," Tessa had hissed). He's now trying to forget all about this and try to focus on learning these jive steps but it's just not the same without Tessa. She and Patrick seem to be getting along very well.

"Scott! Stop looking at them and look at me! I mightn't be Tessa, but I'm not exactly hideous." Kaitlyn sounds exasperated.

"Sorry. They seem to be having fun."

"We could too if you would just pay attention! It's not like you have a reason to be jealous."

"I'm not jealous!" Kaitlyn gives an audible "humph!" in reply to this. "Well, maybe I'm a little worried that she'll like him more than she likes me and realise she pulled the short straw in the partner department."

Kaitlyn says kindly, "You don't need to worry about anything. I can think of very few people who Tessa likes more than she likes you. She talks about you all the time."

"Really?"

She attempts to mimic Tessa's voice, "Scott made this hilarious joke about polar bears earlier. Oh, did I tell you that he said this really clever thing about climate change? Do you remember that time he saved a puppy's life?" She reverts back to her usual tone, "It's exhausting."

He smiles and tries his best at dancing with Kaitlyn even though it feels utterly wrong to be doing this with anyone other than Tessa. HIs face probably gives away his delight when Tessa breathes a sigh of relief on being reunited with him to work on the final part of the dance.

"I don't know how Kaitlyn manages him. He's sweet, but so hyperactive. He makes you look positively calm."

"So you missed me then?" He meant to say it jokingly but he thinks that she recognises that it's a real question.

"Of course I did. Did you miss me?"

"Just like I've been doing since I was nine."

She laughs and the choreographer comes over to tell them to get to work. Everything is so much easier with Tessa.

 

*************************

BALLET IN THE BLOOD

_The Tessa and Scott Strictly Weekend that Was_

As has become tradition we present you with our recap of all the Tessa and Scott moments on _Strictly_. For those of you interested in a more in-depth recap of the entire broadcasts check out our liveblogs of the Saturday live show and the Sunday results show. We must tell you that we are currently in mourning. Our favourite male professional dancer and heartthrob extraordinaire Andrew Pojé has been voted out. We curse whoever placed him with an elderly Russian actress (what role does she play on that Canadian daytime soap anyway?). It is some blessing that we won't have to watch Tatiana Tarasova manhandle him anymore but we don't know how well we're going to cope with only seeing his beautiful face and majestic hair in the professional dancer numbers. Poor Julie (who first introduced us all to his greatness with her liveblog of the cast reveal on _Good Morning Canada_ ) has taken to a secluded darkened room to drown her sorrows and won't be participating in the writing of this review. She claims her absence is due to writing the research proposal for her PhD on the importance of ballet to the culture of the USSR, but we know the truth.

In happier news, the video segment starring Tessa and Scott shown before they performed was the cutest yet. They went to a funfair and he won her a prize. It gets better. They were leaving the fair (with her toting an oversized teddy bear) when this little girl appears in front of them and asks for an autograph. Quite naturally, seeing as the fair is in his hometown and this is Canada and he is a hockey player, Scott reaches for the pen she's holding. The little girl then screws up her face with the greatest look of disgust you have ever seen in all your life and informs him that she's asking for Tessa's autograph because she is the best ballerina of all time and she wants to be just like her when she grows up. The child clearly has impeccable taste. Scott then agrees that Tessa is indeed the best dancer ever and steps back and looks on (dare we say adoringly?) with this look of absolute joy and pride as if this is the best sight he's ever seen. We approve of him.

The dancing was just as good, their best yet in fact. They performed a cha cha to 'Ain't No Mountain High Enough' and it was just as fabulous as you are imagining it was - fun and flirty with just the right amount of sexy (not that there could be too much but, you know, family show and all that). Scott's extension has improved so now their lines are even better which Jayne raved about. Christopher talked about how they were able to communicate so much just using their eyes and how this was so much more effective than just "mauling each other" (we would actually be okay with watching that too). Nikolai didn't say anything of substance, he just rambled on about their chemistry which is something obvious to blind donkeys. Their score was *drum roll* 26! The highest of the series so far with an eight from Christopher and nines from Jayne and Nikolai. At this point we have to admit that we're in agreement with our not-so-esteemed colleagues at that hockey blog who think that Nikolai's scores are related to the amount of clothing worn by the female dancer. Now that Julie is off writing her thesis proposal/creating a shrine to Andrew we feel the need to tell our beloved readers that she is still engaged in a virtual battle of wits with one of those hockey boys. Lots of sparks there, one would almost say chemistry if you'd seen too many rom-coms (which we have).

This discussion of chemistry of course brings us back to Tessa and Scott who graced us with their dancing not once but twice this weekend. The group jive was fun, although we're not entirely sure how successful the partner swap mid-dance was. Scott was with Kaitlyn and Tessa with Patrick and while the steps were fine it just seemed... weird. We've grown very attached to the two of them being together. It appears that they have too judging by the video of the group rehearsal, the highlight of which was them staring forlornly at the other while they were meant to be dancing with someone else. They probably weren't apart for longer than half an hour but their faces on being together again... we've seen people less excited at airport reunions. Nothing much else of note happened during the results show apart from their adorable embrace when their names were called out and the tragedy that was the elimination of one of the most attractive men to walk on planet Earth.

As per usual, we like to recommend you Strictly abstainers one non-Tessa and Scott routine to watch each week. This week we have something special in store for you. Something you never knew you needed in your life. We watched in wonder as this event unfolded in front of us, slightly concerned that we'd mixed up our cocktail measures and were now in some alcohol-induced delusion. But no, it really happened. Patrick Chan and Kaitlyn Weaver danced their cha cha to the seminal work that is Destiny's Child's 'Bootylicious'. Our only complaint is that such a song choice would really have been more appropriate in relation to Scott. We will leave you with those images.

*************************

 

After they hit their end pose and the final bars of 'Puttin' On the Ritz' come to a close Tessa and Scott both collapse onto the wooden floor of the dance studio. The quickstep is exhausting.

"My legs hurt," Scott groans.

"My everything hurts," Tessa mumbles, "why is the floor so uncomfortable?"

Scott doesn't answer her question but instead pulls her up so that her head is resting on his chest.

"That should be better." He pats her hair.

"It's not all that much softer". She pokes his abs. "Do you work out a lot?" It's not like she hasn't felt them before. It had all been for the good of the dances. She had usually been able to keep her opinions to herself, but right now she is too tired to self-censor.

He just laughs and it reverberates through her whole body. "Tessa, I'm an athlete. What do you think I do?"

"Skate around and hit into people? Score things? It's not like you're lifting anyone, that would be hard work."

"If you think it's so easy you should join me tomorrow morning." He's playing with her hair now.

"That would involve me being able to get up again." She's quite content where she is.

"Well, if we do ever manage to get up off this floor I would like you to come play hockey with me."

 

Tessa has discovered that she's not all that good at saying no to Scott, so the next morning she shows up at the rink he trains at even though she thinks this is an unearthly time for physical activity. This type of physical activity anyway.

She bumps into one of the members of the camera crew as she goes in. "Alex, what are you doing here?"

He looks about as happy to be up at this time as she does. "The producers sent me. Don't worry, I'm just going to put the camera on and go to sleep. There won't be any close-ups of you two so that they can get those lip readers on the case."

The producers are really pushing their ‘undeniable chemistry’. "Thanks. Will you be able to edit it so that I don't look completely inept?"

Alex grins, "I can only work with what's in front of me."

He sets up his equipment while she gingerly makes her way onto the ice where Scott seems to be in full flow.

"You came!" This seems to have made him very happy.

"Of course I came."

"Are you ready to take on the NHL's leading scorer and a two-time Olympic champion?"

"I'd like to remind you that you need me to dance with so don't body check me into the boards or anything."

He switches to his serious face, "I'm not going to let anything bad happen to you."

"I know you won't." If she had to choose one person to keep her safe it would be him, which is strange really seeing as they've known each other for such a short time.

Tessa is somewhat surprised to discover that this whole hockey thing is actually kind of fun. It's not dancing, but there's something exhilarating about it all the same.

She scores a goal so impressive that Scott scoops her up into his arms and twirls her around. They're both out of breath by the time he rests her down.

"Hey, do you want to do something crazy?"

"What?" Their faces are so close together.

"Dance with me."

"Here?"

"No, on Mars. Yes, here."

"Are you trying to relive our childhood meeting?" she teases.

"Something like that."

He takes a step back and bows. "May I have this waltz, Miss Virtue?"

She curtsies, "I would be honoured, Mr Moir."

They take off. She notices all the same things that so surprised her on that first day they waltzed together in the dance studio - how good he is, how good they are together, how natural it all feels. After a while she stops thinking, and just dances.

 

*************************

BLADE BROTHERS

_Who Cares About the Dancing, We Saw Scott Moir on the Ice_

It was only for a few seconds, but what a few seconds it was. Scott Moir, the man, the legend, back on the ice playing the sport we love. We're seriously considering contacting the producers and asking them to send us all the extra footage they must have. Why did they show us him and Tessa waltzing around when we could have been watching the master at work? It's like if Tessa was teaching him ballet and instead of that they showed them doing the limbo or something. There is no justice in the world. One of the members of our band of writers, young Jack, now knows a lot about ballet as one of the lovely ladies over at 'Ballet in the Blood' has been educating him on such matters. We were going to make a joke about other things they could teach each other, but we decided we're too classy for that… plus Jack is a lawyer and we don't want to get sued by one of our own.

Although the title of this post may suggest otherwise the dancing was pretty good too. They did a quickstep and the name is appropriate because they were flying across that dance floor. They danced to our grandmother's favourite song, 'Puttin' On the Ritz'. Said grandmother is also very taken with Scott Moir even though she's heard rumours that "he's a bit of a boyo" (she's originally Irish, she tells us that a boyo is a cheeky sort and something of a ladies' man). The judges thoroughly approved, rewarding them with the highest score of the series so far, 3x9=36 (we're good at math). Yeah, the dance was so great that Nikolai gave them a nine despite the fact that that song is from 1930 AND that Tessa was wearing a full-length dress. Next week they're dancing to a samba which will presumably mean another short dress. Anything could happen.


	4. Chapter 4

Tessa sometimes wonders about her choreographic motivations. Was some of this touching bordering on the excessive? She tells herself that it's in keeping with the dance but she's a little worried that she's letting this attraction or infatuation or whatever it is get the best of her. Scott's hand is currently resting rather high on the thigh. Did she even tell him to place it there? Her head is so muddled.

"I think maybe that's enough for today." Her voice has this weird breathy quality to it and she hopes it doesn't sound as... unprofessional to him as it does to her. Maybe it's just her overactive imagination (so many inappropriate thoughts), but Scott looks a little disappointed as he nods and picks up his water bottle. He takes a swig and some of the water misses his lips and trickles down his face onto his t-shirt. She is watching this with way too much interest. She needs to get a grip.

"So... I want to ask you something." He looks nervous.

"Sure," she smiles readily.

"I have this Olympian dinner dance celebration thingy and I can bring a guest and I was just, you know, wondering if you'd come with me? It's not like a date so it's within your rules. Chiddy's bringing Kaitlyn so it would be fun. Anyway, I need you there to help me prevent him from making a move on her and embarrassing himself and then getting beat up by Andrew."

"You really have a way of charming a girl, Scott Moir. 'Um, do you maybe want to go out with me so we can stop our friend hitting on our other friend?' "

He runs his hand through his hair. "I just didn't want you to make you feel like you had to come, or that it was a big deal. It's fine if you don't want to, but I thought you might like it and I- I'd like it better if you were there too..."

She stops his babbling. "I'd love to come."

"Really? Good, that's great." He looks surprised. She doesn't understand why, it's not something she even had to think about.

"I don't think you need to worry too much about keeping Patrick safe. Andrew isn't really the violent type." She pauses and adds mischievously (not flirtatiously, not at all) "Will I have to worry about all the girls whose hearts you broke?"

"I don't break people's hearts! Not intentionally!" he protests indignantly. "Well, there is going to be someone I dated there, but I didn't break her heart. She's a curler."

"I prefer curling to hockey. It's so much more cerebral." She's just saying this for effect really and the effect is most entertaining. Scott can't get any words out and his expression changes from perplexed to furious to disappointed to suspicious. "I read about you two."

"What exactly did you read?" He lowers himself to sit with his back to one of the mirrored walls and she joins him.

"Not much. You two dated after Sochi, your schedules didn't work out or something. I'm not that interested in your love life you know." She shouldn't tell such blatant lies.

"So you didn't go into the darker recesses of the internet then?"

"No, why?" Her voice becomes hushed, "Is there a sex tape?"

"God no. There's just this weird blog..." He trails off and she motions for him to continue.

"They're convinced that the girl I was seeing is secretly married to this male curler and that they have a kid together who they're like hiding from the world. Apparently I was just pretending to date her out of some team solidarity or something?"

Tessa tries to process this. "But... how... why... what?"

"I don't understand it either. It kind of put a strain on the whole relationship. She's actually with him now though, so that's good. Also, it's shut the blog up. It was just such a weird situation."

She takes his hand. "I know what it's like to have people say things about you that aren't true. There were these rumours, did you hear about them?"

"I heard there were rumours, but that's all I know."

She doesn't really talk about this with anyone. She takes a breath. "I don't know where to begin. There was this guy, he was a sponsor of the ballet. He'd been a basketball player in the U.S before returning home to Russia and he was a huge star, married some model, made a tonne of money. Anyway, the dancers are, I guess, encouraged to do what it takes to keep the sponsors happy and donating. So this man asked me out and I didn't really feel like I had much of a choice in the matter if I wanted to keep my place in the company. We went out for dinner a few times and it was fine, he was very charming. My boyfriend and I had just broken up so I think I was a bit flattered by it all. But then... he had these expectations of me. What I should wear, how I should act, and... he wanted more from the relationship then I was willing to give. He was married, he had a kid. I ended it, whatever it was. He wasn't very happy but it was the right thing to do."

Somewhere along the way Scott had put his arms around her and it makes things easier; she feels safe there. "I thought it was all over. Then he got a divorce from his wife and all of a sudden there were pictures of us together in all the tabloids. I was this Canadian slut who had broken up some perfect Russian marriage. Then they found out that I'd been dating Fedor, I've told you about Marina - the artistic director - and well, Fedor is her son. So now the story was that I had just slept my way to the top. It was horrible. My legs had just started to get really bad. I thought I might lose everything. I was so stressed, I couldn't rehearse or exercise enough and I was terrified I was going to put on weight so I didn't eat as much as I should have, which obviously just made things worse. Everyone was worried - Marina, my mom, my sister. I decided to go home and get the surgery and here we are."

"Oh Tessa," he kisses the top of her head and hugs her closer to him.

"Um, yeah, I was a bit of a mess before I met you." She wipes the tears from her eyes.

"I'm sorry you went through all that. I wish there was something I could do."

"You're here," she says simply. "You're what I need. I had all these ideas about what you were going to be like just because you were this rich sportsman with a reputation and I was completely wrong. I wasn't really looking forward to doing the show and you have made it into this great experience. There's no one else I would rather do this with."

"Not even someone who could do a samba roll?"

"Not even," she promises. She thinks the mood could do with some lightening. "I wouldn't mind having a partner who didn't complain about my music choices though. 'Hip Hip Chin Chin' is perfect."

"I still think we should have gone with Shakira."

" 'Hips Don't Lie' is my dancing around my bedroom song, it is not my dancing in front of the nation song."

"Well, do you want to listen to one of your dancing around the kitchen songs while I make you dinner?"

"You burned the sauce last time."

"At least I can make sauce to burn. That was your fault anyway, you distracted me."

Tessa rolls her eyes as he helps her up off the floor. "Whatever you say. I suppose I should give Kaitlyn and Andrew some alone time. They might finally figure things out."

"You just said that there's no one you'd rather be with, that probably has more to do with it."

"I said that there's no one I'd rather do _Strictly_ with! It's quite different."

"Whatever you say, Tessa," he whispers into her ear. A shiver goes through her. They make their way out of the building hand in hand.

 

Tessa laughs when Kaitlyn hands her another glass of champagne. "You shouldn't have to drink this much to prepare you for a night with Patrick."

"This has nothing to do with Patrick! I'm just enjoying getting ready with my best friend."

"Mmhmm," Tessa nods while trying to put the finishing touches to her make-up.

The doorbell rings and Kaitlyn flies out. Tessa thinks this may have more to do with her friend's need to spend as much time with Andrew as possible before she has to leave rather than any desire to rush off to the party.

"So this is where you dance around to Shakira." In her mirror she can see Scott leaning against the door to her room managing to look like both Prince Charming and the star of her own personal, rather more adult, fairytale.

"You made me smudge my lipstick," she complains. She fixes it with a tissue, smoothes down her sleek black dress and turns to face him. His eyes begin to ever so slightly resemble saucers and she smirks.

"You look incredible."

"I thought I should make an effort seeing as I'm going to be on the arm of an Olympic champion. I like your tie," she comments as she straightens it.

"Meryl gave it to me after she saw your dress."

"And here I was thinking my great fashion sense had rubbed off on you." She removes her hands from where they've been resting on his shoulders. "We should probably get going. I think Kaitlyn wants to take a lot of pictures."

Kaitlyn does take a lot of pictures, so many that they nearly miss their taxi. In all the rushing Tessa forgets her purse and has to run back upstairs to get it.

"It's only me!" she calls to Andrew as she runs in the door. She hears a lot of clattering in the kitchen and goes to make sure he's okay. She finds him murdering some peppers.

"What did the vegetables ever do to you?" she asks.

"Oh, hey Tess." He sighs and, much to her relief, puts the knife down. "I guess I'm not as chill about Kaitlyn going to this event with Patrick as I thought I was."

In a weird way she thinks this is a hopeful sign. "Oh, really?"

"Yeah. He's this famous Olympic athlete and, I mean, what do I have to offer in comparison to that?"

Tessa is pretty sure that a lot of people would reply to this question with "Your face." Her response is a little different. "You're her partner. She trusts you. She loves you. You're the one she spends all her free time with, the one she talks about incessantly."

Andrew still looks unconvinced. She's probably violating the codes of friendship, but she decides to tell him something Kaitlyn confided in her about. These two need a helping hand and she's worried about the fate of the onions who are next in line for the chopping board. "Kaitlyn cried when she found out you were dancing with Tatiana Tarasova. She cried with relief. She hadn't been sleeping because she was terrified that you were going to be paired with some gorgeous woman who you were going to dance off into the sunset with."

"That's ridiculous."

"As is you worrying about her and Patrick."

"Thanks, Tessa." He pulls her in for a big hug.

"I'm sorry for interrupting." She turns to see Scott staring at them with some unreadable expression on his face. "If I had known that you two were... I would never have asked..."

"What?" Tessa and Andrew say simultaneously before looking at each other and bursting into laughter.

"You thought we were together?"

"Are you drunk already, Moir?"

"Objectively, I understand why people would be interested but..." She can't explain it.

"Kaitlyn," Andrew supplies.

"Yes, and..." She isn't going to voice the rest of that thought.

Scott's face is doing the weird thing that happens when he tries not to grin. "Sorry about the misunderstanding. The others are waiting. We should go."

"You have nothing to worry about, " she assures Andrew.

"I can take care of Patrick," Scott winks.

"You're an idiot," she tells him as the elevator makes its way down.

"Would it surprise you if I told you that you're not the first person to say that?"

"If I didn't know better I might think you were a little jealous, Scotty," she sing-songs.

"Since when do you call me Scotty? Only my mom does that."

She shrugs, "I must have picked it up from her. I like it."

"Do you talk to my mom a lot?"

"We text all the time. I'm her favourite child now by the way."

His smile is reflected in the elevator mirror, the one that makes her heart beat especially fast.

Her heart beats even faster later in the night when they're dancing to 'Jack and Diane', a song that Scott knows all the words to. He lifts her up so that her forehead is resting on his. He has his eyes closed as if he's drinking it all in, and it's then that it hits her. She has this epiphany that what she's feeling isn't just some physical attraction or passing infatuation. She is falling in love with Scott Moir.

He puts her down and looks at her. She's about to kiss him when the music changes. Patrick appears with his tie around his head and his trousers rolled up to his knees, flinging his arms around them and singing off-key along with Bon Jovi. Scott looks like he's contemplating violence. She wonders if he feels it too - the magnetic pull, the butterflies, the fever. She loves him. There is no turning back.

 

*************************

BLADE BROTHERS

_Scott Moir: Samba Man_

Another week, another win for Virtue and Moir. They landed on top of the leaderboard yet again with their saucy samba (we're all about alliteration). They received a shower of nines from the judges with praise about hips and rhythm and samba rolls and other things we don't really understand. We were just happy that Moir did a shimmy because that's going to make a great reaction gif for whenever he scores. Priorities. If you are interested in reading some actual analysis of the dancing head on over to 'Ballet in the Blood' where they know their pivots from their pirouettes. Did you know that Julie, one of their bloggers, double majored in Russian and History? Or that she bakes, and volunteers at a retirement home? We do, because we're hearing about her all the time from certain quarters which shall remain nameless.

Remaining on the topic of people who like ballet and people who like hockey dating, what is the story with Tessa and Scott? They seem to be joined at the hip, but whenever they're asked if they're together it's all "best friends" and "special connection". We've seen Scott with his hockey best friends and it doesn't look like this. It's not as if we're invested or anything, just curious. Scott is apparently the Canadian Casanova, but he appears to have made no successful move on the beautiful dancer he spends all his time with? Maybe Tessa has better taste. Or, as struck us one night after a discussion about the importance of team unity and spirit, maybe they're just focusing on the dancing?

What strikes us most about them compared to the others, apart from the fact that they dance better and make googly-eyes at each other all the time, is that they are undoubtedly a team. If one of them is having a bad day the other picks up the slack, and they stand up for each other no matter what. We saw in the pre-dance package that Scott was not initially a fan of Tessa's music choice for this week. He even put on a short performance of a Shakira song, complete with wiggling, to try and bring her around to his way of thinking. She laughed, as did we. The boys in the locker room will be having fun with that for years to come. When it came time for the judges' comments and Nikolai complained about music choice Scott seemed to have changed his tune. Now 'Hip Hip Chin Chin' was the best choice, it was authentic samba music, Tessa always picked perfectly and how dare Nikolai suggest otherwise. He looked like he was about to swing for him and we were kind of disappointed when Tessa whispered something into his ear and he calmed down. We think this show could do with more fights. She got her chance to talk about how wonderful he is later. The presenter asked Scott why he thought they were doing so well with Latin dances and he replied that it was because they could put Tessa out in front and he just shimmied in the background. Tessa was having none of this and started a monologue about what a great dancer he is and how much he's improved. It looked like she would happily have continued on for quite a long time but they had to go to a commercial break.

In conclusion, they like each other, they respect each other, they make an excellent team. Maybe they don't want to jeopardise their chances of winning with a romance? Is it weird that we think they'd be great together? Maybe we are kind of invested after all.

**************************

 

The universe is out to get them, it's the only explanation that Scott can come up with. Tessa is home sick with some terrible flu and he has to dance with someone else. He may have to dance with them all week. He thinks he got the raw end of the deal.

"Scott, look into my eyes," Elena coaxes gently in her Russian accent.

He doesn't want to look at her. He most certainly doesn't want to touch her. This is all very wrong. He is meant to dance with Tessa. It feels like he's cheating on her. He feels guiltier about this than the time he actually did cheat on a girl he was seeing (in his defence, he thought they were on a break). To make matters worse, the dance for this week is the rumba which is very intimate and sensual. He does not want to be intimate and sensual with anyone other than Tessa.

"I know you don't want to dance with me. That is okay. Tessa is the best dancer and you two have a special bond. But you need to be able to perform a routine with her when she gets better so you need to practise."

She has a point. He nods and hopes he doesn't look too much like a sullen teenager.

Elena smiles brightly, "Will we pick song first or work on steps?"

"Work on steps," he decides hastily. "Tessa will pick the song."

It's not that he wants to spend any more time dancing with her than is absolutely necessary, he's just worried about her music choices. Her last dance before she and her partner Nick had been booted off was (worryingly enough) a rumba to music from Ghost. Nikolai had been very taken with it (he seemed to be very taken with Elena in general), but Jayne and Christopher had been less than impressed. Words like "cheesy" had been thrown around. He is not going out of this show dancing to some trashtastic number with a girl other than Tessa at his side.

After two days it all gets too much for him and he goes to see her. He didn't know it was possible to miss being around a person that much. Then again, he doesn't know if he's felt this strongly for anyone else so what does he know about missing people. Her absence feels particularly cruel after his moment of realisation that he was incontrovertibly in love with her which had overtaken him while he was dancing with her at the Olympic Champions' dinner last week. She has given him strict orders to stay away from her in case he contracts whatever she has, but at this point he couldn't care less. Being sick with Tessa sounds a lot more inviting than being healthy alone.

He arrives at Tessa's apartment to find Meryl just about to leave.

"You're not meant to be here," she scolds.

"I really miss her, Meryl."

"Those puppy dog eyes won't work on me! She told you not to come near her, do you want to upset her?"

"I want to make her feel better. I made soup!"

"Why is it in a floral travel mug?" Meryl looks highly amused.

"I didn't have any tupperware. It's what I use to bring Tessa her coffee in the mornings."

He can see Meryl softening. "What else do you have there?"

"Some Audrey Hepburn movies. They're her favourite and her copies are at home, she was complaining about it last week."

"I could give her the stuff you brought," Meryl suggests.

"You're on your way out, I don't want to delay you." Meryl raises an eyebrow. "Alright, I just need to see Tessa."

"It's been two days! You've talked on the phone!"

"It's not the same," he huffs.

"You're not going to leave until you've seen her, have you?"

He shakes his head.

Meryl sighs and lets him in the door. "Don't you dare get sick on me!" she calls as he makes his way down the hall to Tessa's room.

He opens the door to see a pale and miserable-looking Tessa buried under a mountain of blankets. She lights up on seeing him before a scowl crosses her face. She throws one of the three tissue boxes that surround her at his head.

"I told you to keep away from me! Do you want to get sick?!"

"It sounds preferable to not seeing you." He sits down beside her on her bed. This isn't exactly what he imagined their first encounter on her bed would be like.

She frowns. "I want to push you but I don't think I should touch you. What happens if you're not able to dance on Saturday?"

"I won't dance then. I won't be dancing if you're not ready either. Here, have some soup."

She sniffs it suspiciously before taking a sip. "This is the first thing I've wanted to eat in days."

"It's my mom's recipe. It's like medicine, you'll be better in no time."

"I hear you've been giving Elena a hard time." She looks a bit disappointed and he feels momentarily guilty.

"She's not you."

Tessa notices the DVDs by his side. "Did you bring Audrey Hepburn films for me to watch?" He thinks he can see tears in her eyes. "I'd hug you but..."

He hugs her instead. She squirms in his arms, but she can't loosen his hold.

"I've missed you so much," he murmurs into her hair.

"I've missed you too, but that doesn't mean I want you to get sick!"

"It's probably too late to do anything to prevent it at this stage."

She must see the logic in this because when they start watching _Funny Face_ she curls up beside him with her head on his shoulder and her arm across his chest. He doesn't know if this is doing anything to improve her illness, but it's definitely curing his.

They're about halfway through the film when they hear the front door open and footsteps making their way to Tessa's room. There is a lot of frantic whispering.

"You hold it!" Kaitlyn hisses.

"It was your idea!" He thinks that sounds like Andrew.

"It's too big for me to carry!" Kaitlyn's voice becomes clearer. "Hi Tess! We know how much you've missed Scott so we decided to bring him to you!"

They burst into the room with Andrew hauling a poster almost as tall as he is covered in pictures of Scott and Tessa. There are also a few of Scott on his own, including every photograph from his shirtless _GQ_ shoot a few years back.

Tessa has covered her face with her hands. Kaitlyn and Andrew are now hiding the poster behind their backs.

"She didn't ask for this!" Kaitlyn squeals. "It was all our idea! This isn't as weird as it looks, I swear!"

"It was Kaitlyn's idea! I just helped." Andrew seems to want to make this very clear. "

Thanks a lot, Andrew. We're just those kooky roommates!" Kaitlyn then breaks into a rendition of the theme song from _New Girl_ complete with tap dancing and jazz hands.

"We're going to leave now. It's good to see you looking better, Tessa." Andrew shepherds Kaitlyn out of the bedroom, dragging the oversized artwork behind him.

"I can't believe that just happened," Tessa groans.

"I found it very entertaining," he assures her.

"I'm not some scary stalker type, neither are they. It's just that I missed seeing you, and they really wanted to make me feel better so... I guess that was the result."

"They definitely made an effort." Tessa yawns."I'm pretty sleepy so if you want to go that's fine."

"I need to see the end of the movie!"

She smiles, "Well, if I'm asleep you can just leave when it's over."

He doesn't leave. It would be too difficult anyway seeing as Tessa is sprawled all over him.

He wakes up in the morning to the sound of Kaitlyn making her way into the room with a cup of tea, "Tessa, you need to get up for your doctor's appointment. Oh, Scott! You're still here." She blushes. "I should probably have knocked."

Tessa is now sitting up and rubbing her eyes. Her hair is an absolute mess and he doesn't think he's seen a more adorable sight in all his life.

"What are you still doing here?"

"I fell asleep."

"Oh." She takes his hand and traces the lines on his palm. "I hope you had sweet dreams."

"I dreamt of you." He's too tired to be able to tell what is appropriate to reveal to her.

They both turn to Kaitlyn when she lets out an "Aww!" She continues, "Sorry to ruin the moment, but we really need to get you to that appointment."

"I don't want to keep Dr. Flatt waiting. I'm feeling a lot better so maybe I'll be able to dance with you after all."

"I'd like that." He tries to get up. "Tessa, I might need my hand."

She relinquishes it. "Hopefully I'll see you later. Be nice to Elena."

He tries. It's not that he isn't nice to her, it's just that it's all so awkward. They end up just sitting and gushing about how amazing Tessa is together.

"Is this how you're planning on winning this competition?" Tessa taps her foot on entering the room.

"Thank God you're here!" Elena exclaims. "I don't know how you do it!"

"Someone has to put up with him," she grins.

"Are you sure you're well enough?" He doesn't want her to push herself too hard.

"Never better. Now, say thank you to Elena."

"Thanks for everything. I'm sorry I wasn't at my best." He's trying to look into her eyes sincerely but he can see Tessa bending over to change her shoes and it's very distracting.

Elena follows his gaze and laughs. "I wouldn't want to dance with anyone other than Tessa either if I were you."

She gives Tessa a quick hug and turns to him and winks before leaving, "You two have fun."

"We have no time for fun!" Tessa announces. "We're going to have to do lots of extra hours to get this dance ready."

"Such hardship," he sighs. She pokes him before putting on the music they will be dancing to.

'Temptation' is a very apt song. He's forgotten just how hard it is to remain in control and not let his feelings take over. It's so overwhelming: her touch, her scent, her taste (he thinks his neck nuzzling makes an excellent addition to the choreography and Tessa doesn't seem to be complaining). The rumba seems like an excuse to be all over each other and, as challenging as it is, he's more than okay with this.

The judges are more than okay with it too. Jayne rewards them with the first ten of the season. Christopher commends the connection between them. Nikolai goes off on a rant about the fruits of forbidden love.

Backstage, after the cameras have stopped rolling, he picks her up and spins her around until both of them are out of breath. He gently puts her back down and she looks so perfect in her gold dress with her flushed cheeks that he just wants to give in. He's about to kiss her when Patrick suddenly appears, throwing his arms around them and yelling about how great they were. He wants to kill him. Even Tessa seems annoyed, giving Chiddy the most magnificent side eye he's ever seen. Maybe he's not alone in this. Maybe she feels it too.

 

*************************

BALLET IN THE BLOOD

_The Virtue/Moir Connection_

So... has everyone finished fanning themselves? THAT was a rumba. It was the personification of dirty dancing and we loved every salacious second. They finally got a ten and if this dance wasn't going to get one we don't know what would. It's kind of insane that they only had two full days of rehearsals, but maybe that made it fresher? Or they missed each other so much that they had to work it out through dance? Maybe two days of rehearsals should be their game plan from now on. Anyhow, the purpose of this post isn't actually to fangirl about their rumba, we've done that extensively already in our liveblog, it is to make a confession. No, not that Julie is now a fledgling hockey fan after picking up strange ideas from that boy (we'd need a twelve step programme to come to terms with that). We've been thinking it for a while but it was something we couldn't even admit to ourselves, let alone each other. Prepare to clutch your pearls.

Dear readers, we are of the opinion that Tessa Virtue is currently enjoying the best dance partnership of her career. With a hockey player. Dancing ballroom and Latin on a Canadian reality TV show. There, we said it.

Yes, from a purely technical perspective obviously this isn't the best she's ever danced. But... that connection. We're not saying that Tessa hasn't had good connections with people she's danced with in the past, she has. She's just about the only person to have successfully kept up with Evgeni Plushenko *moment of silence for his back injuries*. She was charming with Maxim Trankov in _Coppélia_. We bawled when she was Juliet to Jeremy Abbott's Romeo during the Bolshoi's tour of North America. But this, this is different. Tessa is an excellent actress (if not the best on the Bolshoi stage definitely the most subtle) but she's never performed like this. So we have come to the conclusion that she's not acting. She's just a girl, standing in front of a boy, asking him to love her (or, you know, dancing with him, but we couldn't refuse an opportunity for a _Notting Hill_ reference).

It's all just so natural: the way she looks at him, the way they touch. She's good, but she's not that good (it feels blasphemous to write that). Girlfriend has it bad. On the bright side it looks like he's in just as deep. We really hope they're doing something about it because otherwise that is an unhealthy amount of unresolved sexual tension. We just want them to be happy (together).


	5. Chapter 5

"Tessa, can you stop looking at your watch and focus on the dancing please?" Jeff grumbles.

"I'm really sorry! It's just that I promised Scott that I'd meet him, Charlie, and Meryl at nine and..."

"I'm sure Scott will appreciate that we need to rehearse for our moment of glory."

Every week a famous (some more so than others) singer or group performs at the results show and one of the professional couples dances to whatever single they're currently trying to sell. It's Tessa and Jeff's turn this week and they're going to be performing alongside Gracie Gold who is the new Taylor Swift. Or maybe she's just friends with Taylor Swift, Tessa isn't sure.

"He's celebrating some good news from the doctor. His wrist is completely healed!"

Jeff's jokey expression has been replaced by a more serious one. "How are you feeling about that?"

"What do you mean? I'm delighted for him."

"Well, he'll be going back to his team after this, right? And you're going back to Moscow, aren't you?"

She nods. She isn't thinking about what happens after the show ends, she's not ready.

"They probably don't even have a ballet company in Pittsburgh," Jeff says the city's name with some distaste as he manoeuvres her around the floor.

"They do! The Pittsburgh Ballet Theater."

"And you just happen to know this?" He raises his eyebrows.

"I know a lot about regional ballet companies! It's not like I've been researching..." Her resolve falters. It's hard to lie to one of your oldest friends.

"Tess." The song ends (thankfully, she's getting a bit tired of it) and Jeff wraps his arms around her.

"It's so stupid," she mumbles. "Nothing's even happened, not really." And yet it feels like everything has happened.

"Maybe not a lot has happened physically ,but that doesn't equal nothing. I've seen the two of you together, I know you. This isn't nothing."

"I'm not going to get much past you, am I?"

"Sorry, sweetheart. We've been friends for far too long."

"I just don't know what to do." There's a lot to consider - maybe his feelings aren't as strong as hers, the competition, what's going to happen after the competition.

"Part of me wants to tell you to go ravish him..."

"Jeff!"

"But then there's the part of me that worries about what will happen after. You're going to be so far away from each other. I don't want to see you get hurt."

Tessa doesn't want to get hurt. Worse, she doesn't want Scott to get hurt.

"I just want you to be happy."

She smiles weakly, "We should do some more practising."

She tries to ignore the fact that it feels almost strange to dance with Jeff now. He doesn't anticipate her every move as easily as Scott does. She doesn't just fit into him the way she does with Scott. She feels guilty about this, Jeff was her partner first after all, but she's beginning to come around to her mom and Alma's fairytale notions about how she and Scott were meant to dance together. It just feels so right. He's not here now though, and in a few weeks he won't be here at all, neither will she. So she keeps dancing and ignores the pain, like she always does.

 

"Scott, can you please stop looking at your watch. She said she'd come."

He wouldn't blame her if she didn't want to come, they're in the same bar where he infamously described her as an ice queen. Charlie is right though, she did say she would get here as soon as she could. Tessa never lets him down.

"She's rehearsing with Jeff. She probably just got delayed."

"Or she got sick of you and ran off." His face must be a pretty picture because Charlie immediately starts to apologise for his poor attempt at a joke.

"You wouldn't be too pleased if I said that about your precious Tanith, Whitey."

"Tanith and I have actually gone on a date."

"She thought you wanted to be her agent until you explained you only represented athletes. It's not a date if the other person thinks it's a business lunch."

"You mean that we haven't been dating for the past few years?" Charlie has on his best wounded puppy expression.

"Sorry to break your heart. I'll give you a bigger cut of any new deals I get once I'm back playing to soften the blow."

"It's going to be so awesome to see you out there again!" Charlie looks as excited as any other fan.

"I can't wait."

In some ways this is true - he's missed playing properly, he's missed his teammates, he's missed feeling like himself. He's also enjoyed this reality TV show experience more than he ever dreamed possible, all because of Tessa. He doesn't know where she fits in with him going back to his hockey career. In a lot of ways he could wait a long time to go back because going back means this is all over.

"I understand if you have mixed feelings about it you know."

"I'm not worried about whether I'm ready. I've been feeling great the past few weeks. I'm back." Ever since Tessa told him he could get through this injury he has known that he would.

"I'm not talking about anything like that. I'm talking about Tessa."

He doesn't give Charlie enough credit sometimes. He's about to tell him that when he's attacked by a pair of very familiar arms and the smell of his favourite perfume.

"Scotty!! I'm so, so happy for you! I'm so proud." Tessa continues to gush but he just tries to memorise the feel of her in his arms as today's events have made him realise that he won't have her here like this forever.

She releases him and he gets a look at her beaming face. "I couldn't have done it without you."

"What? I did nothing!" She shakes her head vigorously.

"You believed in me."

"Ahem, I'm going to get us some drinks." He tears his gaze away from Tessa to see Charlie looking at them awkwardly.

"Meryl will be here soon. She just texted me." Tessa smiles at Charlie before he leaves to go to the bar.

"How was your rehearsal with Jeff?"

"Good! Well, it's almost strange not to be dancing with you at this stage."

"That's because I'm the best dancer," he teases.

"You can't say that until after you've won."

"That's not too far away. There's, what, three more shows before the final?"

Tessa takes a shallow breath. "Can we maybe not talk about the show coming to an end yet? It's going to make me sad and I don't want to be, not tonight, not when we're celebrating."

He crushes her to him as if just keeping her close to him will make everything okay. "I don't want to talk about it either." He thinks he can hear her let out the smallest of sobs into his chest. "You know, you've done a terrible job with that ice queen title I gave you."

She giggles. "I'm sorry to be such a disappointment."

"You could never be a disappointment."

Charlie groans on banging the beers down on the table while Meryl just rolls her eyes as she neatly lays out the cocktails.

"Do you two know what you look like? Everyone has camera on their phones now you know."

"Charlie, what are you suggesting? That people might think they're together? How outlandish. Next you'll be telling me that people think Kaitlyn and Andrew are dating when they're just so platonic." Meryl smirks and takes a sip from whatever pink substance she's drinking.

"Well, those two will be dating by the end of this. I am going to make it happen," Tessa announces.

"I'll help." It's his duty as her dance partner to volunteer.

"At least Kaitlyn and Andrew work as a couple. Not like the two of you."

"Excuse me, Charles?" Maybe Tessa can pull off the ice queen role.

"I didn't mean to offend you, Tessa. I was just thinking about how you're totally out of his league."

"It's true," Meryl nods. "He's just not that handsome."

"Meryl Davis! You apologise right now! Scott is very handsome!" He has rarely seen Tessa this animated, she's wagging her finger and practically shaking.

"He's not ugly, but he's not Andrew Pojé levels of hotness."

Tessa proceeds to launch into a rant about looks and personality while Meryl and Charlie attempt to rebut her points. Scott is content to just sit back and watch, to just enjoy the moment rather than worrying about what's going to happen next.

 

***************************

BALLET IN THE BLOOD

_'S Wonderful_

Are you still alive dearest readers? Have you all melted after watching the gloriousness that was Tessa and Scott's foxtrot to music from the Audrey Hepburn classic _Funny Face_? We almost missed the dance after we just about died during the interview beforehand. We've decided to put together a little retrospective highlighting all the wonderful moments these pre-dance video segments have given us.

Week One - It looked like they were going to hate each other. The tension, the sniping, the daggered looks... Oh how times have changed.

Week Two - That time Scott couldn't move his hips like a normal person (or maybe that's how normal people move their hips and we've just been spoiled by watching too many good dancers) and Tessa taught him how. Good times.

Week Three - We got a glimpse into the costume designing process with them being fitted for their charleston costumes. Sidebar: is Tessa the costume designers' favourite or is it just coincidence that everyone else has been saddled with at least one monstrosity and she has looked like a goddess each week? This video is of course chiefly remembered for them checking each other out while the other wasn't looking.

Week Four - They went to a funfair. He won her a prize. A little girl asked for her autograph and he was so happy and we fell in love with him.

Week Five - THEY ICE DANCED TOGETHER. On the ice. Just like when they were kids. We had a little something in our eyes.

Week Six - More Tessa trying to make Scott into a Latin lover, this time incorporating samba rolls and them falling into a heap on the floor. "I didn't mean to feel you up!" We are so sure.

Week Seven - Tessa was sick. Scott moped. Elena pulled exasperated faces. They were reunited. The world rejoiced.

So we come to Week Eight. The best one yet. We say that every week though so who knows what's coming our way next. Anyway, they were doing a photo shoot with them all dolled up as the Audrey Hepburn and Fred Astaire characters from _Funny Face_ which is enough amazingness for any video. Scott was asked why they had chosen this film for movie week and he explained that it was Tessa's favourite and they had watched it together just last week when she was ill. You may think that is enough to warrant a sugar coma, but more was to come.

The interviewer then said that _Funny Face_ was a romantic film and asked what their idea of romance was. "Everyone has another half that they have to find in the world" - Scott Moir everyone. At which point we started screaming that he'd already found her. And then Tessa answered the same question as follows - "The ability to laugh and be completely yourself with someone else". Oh wait, did we forget to mention that one of our favourite moments in the video segment from Week Five was when they were asked what their favourite thing about each other was and she said "the way Mr Scott Moir makes me laugh"? THE WAY HE MAKES HER LAUGH. We remember that moment very well, so well that it was the first thing we thought of when she uttered that immortal phrase. We got so excited that we had to pause to minimise distraction and allow for maximum flailing. We haven't fully recovered, we may never do so.

We're choosing to interpret this as their way of announcing that they're soul mates even if they haven't admitted this to each other or to themselves. Don't fight us on this - Julie is scary when angered. The young swain who is courting her, a certain hockey blogger you may have seen us mention, learned this when he took her to a hockey game and had to physically restrain her from launching herself at some trucker (she's all of five foot by the way) who had the audacity to suggest that Scott Moir was not the greatest hockey player of all time. This is why our parents didn't take us to sporting events when we were younger. Ain't no one as tough as a ballet historian who went to an Ivy and likes to marathon _The Great British Bake Off_. We try to remind her that growing up in Canton does not count as being from the mean streets of Detroit, but will she listen? No, it's all "Hold my earrings" and quoting Eminem (that was one time, one time. Also, do we have to tell everyone about my love life? -J).

P.S. We hear that next week's _DanceNet_ , your favourite glossy magazine (maybe it's not, it's okay if you prefer _Vogue_ ), contains a spread involving some of the female professional dancers from _Strictly_. Our sources tell us that Tessa is looking HAWT (that's a direct quote, we don't generally use HAWT in our parlance).

***************************

 

He hates the paso doble. He hates _Carmen_. He hates everything.

"It will be better tomorrow," Tessa insists. "You just need to be more... aggressive."

It's ironic really that he's having trouble with a dance where the story they're telling is all about passion. It should be the easiest thing in the world. It's as if he can't let go, as if something is holding him back.

"It's a pity we get on so well. This would probably be a lot easier if we still hated each other," she observes as she packs up her bag.

"I'll pick a fight with you tomorrow." 

"Remember that practice is in the evening instead! I have that check-up in the morning."

"Do you want me to come with you?"

She smiles at him gratefully. "That's so kind of you, but my mom is coming up. I think she expected to see a lot more of me what with us being in the same country for once so I should probably give her my undivided attention."

"Everything's okay though, isn't it?"

"I've never felt better." She kisses him on the cheek, a mere whisper away from his lips.

 

The next morning he sits around his apartment after returning from the rink. It feels so strange not to be with Tessa and he sends her a text informing her of this. His phone beeps and he smiles in anticipation of her response, but the message isn't from her. It's from one of his buddies and it consists of a rather lewd ode to Tessa's legs and general appearance plus the link to some dance magazine's website. He had forgotten about that photo shoot she did with some of the other dancers. She looks gorgeous which isn't anything surprising. There's a picture of her stretching, one of her doing some impressive leap, one of all the girls warming up (he only sees Tessa) plus more individual ones of the others, some in various states of undress. He skips past them because he's really not interested and woah that is more of Kaitlyn than he needed to see. He wonders how Andrew feels about this. Then his brain short-circuits.

Tessa. Her hands on a ballet barre and her back to a mirror. Wearing a sports bra and shorts (are they shorts?) with her head lifted up and her hair falling down her back. Is that their dance studio? Was she wearing what amounts to just underwear in their dance studio? He puts down the phone and paces around the room. The phone keeps going off as messages flood in from what seems like the majority of heterosexual men he has met in his life, plus a guy he used to play hockey with who is still in the closet but tells Scott that this may be enough to turn him. He really hopes that's a joke because his friend is very charming and Tessa would really like him. Eventually he turns off his phone and goes for a shower.

 

He's late. He's never late. After twenty minutes of unanswered phone calls and text messages she goes full on crazy and calls his mom.

"Tessa, honey, how are you?"

"I'm okay. I was just wondering if you'd heard from Scott recently? He's late for rehearsal and he's not answering his phone. I'm sure there's nothing to worry about but..."

"Oh I was just chatting to him on Skype! He must have forgotten about it. You're probably better off, he was very grumpy!"

"Oh. Okay then. I'll just call in on him I guess."

"I saw those pictures of you in that magazine! You looked stunning!"

"Thanks, Alma. I'll chat to you soon."

She had completely forgotten that the issue was coming out today. She leaves the dance studio and heads into the nearest shop to pick up a copy. The worker tells her that she doesn't need to pay for it as the pictures of her are payment enough (which is beyond creepy). She slaps down the money defiantly and quickly exits, resolving to never darken the doorstep of the establishment again.

Her phone rings and her heart speeds up only to see that it's Kaitlyn.

"What have we done, Tessa? Apparently _DanceNet_ tripled its first day sales record or something. I've been getting all these messages and some of them are super weird."

Come to think of it she has received a lot of texts today, she just hasn't opened them because she was busy with her mom and then worrying about Scott. "I think I just got propositioned by some creepy guy working in a newsagents. It was horrific."

"Patrick would not shut up about it all day and then I go home and Andrew is just like 'You looked beautiful', no mention of the fact that I was posing in little to no clothing! I asked him did it bother him and he was all 'Why would it? As long as you're comfortable that's all that matters.' I'm not talking to him and neither are you."

Kaitlyn is talking so fast that it's hard to keep up. "Wait, are we annoyed at him because he's respecting your choice to do what you want?"

"Um, yes!!! He was meant to get all jealous and possessive and be overcome with passion and then we were finally going to get it together!"

"Did you just do that picture to provoke Andrew into action?"

"No. Maybe. I don't know."

"Why don't you just talk to him about this?"

"I'm all about subtlety. Like that time I suggested we dance to 'Come and Get It', " she comments bitterly.

"You need to put all of this out in the open."

"What did Scott have to say about the pictures?"

"I haven't been speaking to him yet. He missed rehearsal and he wasn't answering his phone but his mom told me he was at home so I'm going there now."

"At least he had a normal reaction," Kaitlyn huffs.

"What do you mean?"

"Tessa, he hasn't contacted you all day. Has that ever happened? And it just so happens to be the same day pictures of you in a state of undress are released. Are you dim?"

"Scott wouldn't... He's... Oh my God, I'm going to kill him. You talk to Andrew or you're next on my hit list."

She has arrived at his apartment. She bangs on the door.

"Hi." That's all he says when he opens the door and lets her in.

"No apology for not showing up to rehearsal?"

"I couldn't make it."

"No apology for not answering your phone?"

"I had to turn it off. I was getting a lot of messages."

"Messages about this?" She brandishes the magazine, pulling it open to the picture of her at the barre.

He shields his eyes.

"Do you have a problem with this, Scott?

"Of course I have a problem with it!"

"What business is it of yours? It's my body! You don't have any ownership of it no matter what kind of connection we have. I thought you were different! I like the way I look now and if I want a picture of it I will get one! I won't always have these abs! It was a classy photo shoot. I think I look nice and, and so does your mom!" She thinks that wasn't a sufficiently powerful end to her little speech so she flings the magazine at his wall.

He looks confused. "What are you even talking about? Of course you can do what you like."

"Yes, yes I can," she snaps before getting really confused too. "What is your problem with it then?"

"I'm really sorry. It's going to sound like I'm blaming you, which I'm not, this is all my fault. You probably practise like that all the time. It's just... I've been doing okay with keeping my feelings in check but this...You... I just needed some time away from you so that I get it all under control."

"Get what under... Oh. Right." She takes a step back and bites her lip. She decides to do what she always does to stop herself getting into trouble - dance. "I disagree. You can use this, um, frustration. It's what we need for this dance."

She fumbles around in her bag until she finds her iPod and starts to play the music from _Carmen_.

He grabs her and they start to dance. It's better, rawer, more powerful, exactly the way she envisioned it. They rehearse for what feels like hours, though she doesn't think her mind is working at an optimum level to be able to tell. Her skin is burning. In a moment of madness when they're pausing in between dances she pulls off her top.

Scott jumps away from her. "What on earth are you doing?"

She shrugs. "Like you said, I practise like this all the time." This isn't quite true. She does rehearse in sports bras fairly regularly, but she isn't wearing a sports bra. Seeing as the rehearsal wasn't going to be that long and as she always dances better when wearing nice underwear she has on some black lace confection. "Do you have a problem with this?"

"No, do you have a problem with this?" His voice has this new liquid quality to it. He pulls off his t-shirt.

Some kind of strangled sound escapes her throat. "Of course not. I can handle it." There is nothing about this situation that she can handle.

"You're sure?" He takes a step closer to her.

"Positive." Her body is humming. He puts his hand on her exposed back and she lets out a gasp. She snakes her arms around him to steady herself which is a good idea in theory, but in practice involves too much and too little skin-on-skin contact.

"This isn't how the dance starts, Tessa."

"No, no it's not."

She lifts her face up and his lips come crashing down on hers. Tessa has often found that things you've dreamed or fantasised about can be disappointing in reality but that is not the case here. At all. She just wants more, needs more, craves more.

 

He shouldn't have done it. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have. If you don't want..." He's interrupted by her lips meeting his with the kind of forcefulness he usually associates with being knocked into the boards at a hockey rink.

"This... is... what... I ... want." She punctuates each breathless word with a kiss to his face and, in case he was in any doubt with regards to her intentions, she starts to undo his belt.

He's never been able to say no to her so he lifts her up and carries her to his room. His trousers are on the floor in a matter of seconds and he guides her to his bed. She lies down and he starts to slowly remove the leggings he's been dreaming of taking off her from the first day he laid eyes on her. His hands have been all over her legs but his lips haven't so as he lowers the soft black fabric he lays a trail of kisses on her skin. He throws the leggings to the floor and takes it all in, the sight of her here on his bed with her hair a dark cloud behind her and the black lace of her lingerie contrasting with the ivory of her perfect skin. She pulls him down on top of her and he buries his face in the crook of her neck as he grapples with the task of unhooking her bra.

"I love you, I love you, I love you," he murmurs into her skin.

"What?" He raises his head to look at her face with its sparkling eyes and swollen lips.

"I love you. You need to know that this isn't just about sex. I love you so, so, much."

She smiles this smile that would cause flowers to bloom and wars to end and if he wasn't already in love with her he would be after seeing it. "I love you too. More than anything."

He kisses her, just kisses her.

"Scott?"

"Yes?"

"You can keep taking my bra off."

He doesn't need to be told twice. He thought he knew all there was to know about Tessa and the effect she has on him but he has so much to learn. Everything is new. The feel of her hands dancing all over his body. The taste of her lips, so sinfully sweet. The sound of her voice as she says his name. He thought he had heard her say it in every tone possible, but there is a new cadence to it as she calls it out again and again.

 

He wakes up to an empty bed and his stomach turns to ice before he hears something break in the kitchen and the rare sound of Tessa swearing. He walks in to find her in an old t-shirt of his trying to clean up the eggs that have broken all over the floor.

She gets up from her knees and throws her hands in the air. "Your kitchen hates me! I can't work the coffee maker and the eggs jumped out of my hands. I was going to make you breakfast and I just made a complete mess."

"I'm just glad you're here." He holds her close to him.

"Where else would I be?"

"I thought you might have regretted last night and left or something."

She looks highly amused by this. "You can be such an idiot." She kisses him slowly and softly. "Do you feel better now?"

"Yes. This, this wasn't how I expected it to happen."

"What were you expecting?"

"I don't know. That the show would be over, that I'd take you out on a date first."

"Only one date?" She raises her eyebrows mischievously.

He shrugs. "They say I'm good with the ladies."

She hits his shoulder.

"Ow! I thought you liked my jokes now. How did you expect it to happen?"

"At the very start when we didn't get on I thought we were just going have a lot of really hot hate sex," she says blithely. "I like this better though."

"Me too." He kisses her and wonders if he'll ever get used to this.

They break apart when they hear a key in his door. "Hi dear! I'm up for a meeting and I just thought I'd call in to make sure everything's okay. Tessa was worrying about you and..."

His mom stops dead in her tracks when she walks into the kitchen. "Well, everything is definitely okay."

"We were just..."

"I'm here to..."

They look at each other and just stop talking. There is no explaining this away.

His mom claps her hands. "Finally! I must ring your mom, Tessa! I'll be in the sitting room, you two just carry on!"

Tessa lays her head on his shoulder. "At least we won't have to have any awkward conversations telling them about us."

He kisses her forehead. "She did tell us to carry on you know."

"We are not going to carry on with your mom talking to mine on the phone a few feet away! Anyway, I need to go home and change, and make sure Kaitlyn talked to Andrew. We need to rehearse!"

"And after rehearsals?"

"I'm sure we can think of something to do after that."

 

Tessa arrives back at her apartment to find Kaitlyn in the kitchen wearing a faded shirt of Andrew's. This in and of itself is nothing new but the ridiculously huge grin she has on her face tells the whole story.

"Where were you last night?" the blonde demands.

"I was at Scott's. I must admit I'm slightly offended that you weren't worried enough about me to make any effort to contact me."

"I figured you were in safe hands. I was a bit busy myself."

"So you?"

"Yes. And you?"

"Yes!"

They both start jumping up and down and squealing as if they're two teenagers who both got their first kiss at the big dance.

"You have to tell me everything."

"Do you need to go to practice? I don't want to delay you."

"Hmm. Do I want to discuss in precise detail the events of our respective long-awaited nights of passion or do I want to go dance a paso to 'Addicted to Love' with Patrick freaking Chan? Tough one."

Tessa grabs a handful of chocolate bars from the cupboard. "We're going to need sustenance."

Her phone starts to ring. She only answers it because it's Scott.

"I'm just letting you know that you left your iPod here in case you're looking for it. Oh, and I miss you. I'll see you soon."

"I might be a little longer than I thought. Kaitlyn and I have a lot to discuss."

He laughs. "Okay, but don't forget about me. I love you."

"Love you too."

 

****************************

BLADE BROTHERS

_Our Recap of the Paso Doble_

They're banging, right?


	6. Chapter 6

"Scott! We need to rehearse!" She reluctantly stops the progress of the hands which have begun to wander under her vest.

"We are rehearsing," he murmurs into her hair.

"For what, an adult movie?"

"We're working on our connection, Tessa." He rolls his eyes at her as if this should be obvious.

"Because that needs so much work." She can roll her eyes too.

"Both our dances this week are about people in love, we should try and make it look somewhat realistic."

"Exactly! Both our dances - there are two of them and we should be practising!"

He sighs dramatically. "You are such a hard taskmaster."

"You want to make it through to the final and win, don't you?"

He lifts her up and spins her around. "I've already won."

"You did not just say that. That's the worst line I've ever heard!"

"Maybe it's not a line."

She leans up to kiss him.

"Please, Tessa. I'm trying to rehearse."

She kisses him anyway until they hear the footsteps of the camera crew coming towards the door and return to waltzing. They should really be working on their other dance, the contemporary piece (a type of dance Tessa had never seen at any Latin or ballroom competition she had ever attended). It's more challenging than the waltz, which feels as easy as breathing, and, if she's thinking about it too hard, too close to their own situation for comfort. But maybe that's why she chose that music and choreographed those movements, so that in dancing through whatever it is they're doing they don't have to talk about it.

 

He's tapping his fingers on the steering wheel and it's making her nervous.

"Scott, are you going to start the car?"

He turns to her, looking very serious. "You don't have to go if you don't want to."

"Your brother invited me to his birthday party, it would be rude not to go! Do you - do you not want me to?"

"Of course I want you to go! I'm just worried that after you meet my family you'll never want to go anywhere with me ever again."

"I love your family!" This seems to mollify him a little as he finally starts the car. "You've only met the saner members. This is going to be the entire Moir clan. They can be scary. My aunt married a Marine and he refuses to visit."

"Your aunt married an American?!" She pretends to be shocked, but Scott acts like that development was indeed a shock to the Moir family.

"Her parents didn't speak to her for a while. Huh, maybe that's why her husband doesn't come to family events."

"Maybe," she says slowly.

"I'm serious about the craziness though. My cousin married a donkey."

"Your cousin what??"

"It did kind of make sense."

"Oh really? Please tell me how." Now she is beginning to worry about what she's heading for in Ilderton.

"His father left the family farm to the donkey so he married it in order to inherit the farm when the donkey dies."

She tries to keep a straight face. "But what if the donkey makes a will and leaves it to someone else? Or wants it to become a donkey sanctuary?"

"That would be a waste! It's very good land."

"Maybe you should try to win the affections of the donkey so that it leaves the land to you."

"I've tried, but Delphine has very discerning taste. She reminds me a little of you actually."

Tessa snorts. "What a wonderful compliment."

"She's a very special donkey, she won a prize at the state fair. I like you better though."

"I like you better than prize-winning donkeys too."

He turns his head to smile at her.

"You should be looking at the road."

He turns back reluctantly. "You're much nicer to look at."

"I hope I'm nicer to look at than Delphine."

He pauses, "I don't know. She's a very beautiful donkey."

She laughs at the utter absurdity of this whole conversation, this whole situation.

"My cousin will probably show you some pictures of her. He's gotten pretty attached."

Scott continues to tell her more stories about his family members and even if he maintains that most of them are certifiable she can tell how much he loves them. She wonders if that's what she'll be to him someday - an amusing anecdote to tell the pretty girl beside him, the ballerina he danced with who thought chocolate was a food group. It strikes her with a sudden ferocity that she doesn't want to be just a story.

"Tess, are you okay?" She had barely noticed that he'd parked the car.

"I was just thinking. You don't need to worry about your family scaring me off." She is in too deep.

He strokes his thumb down the side of her face. "You have nothing to worry about either. They're going to love you."

"You think?"

"I know. I hope you got a good present for Danny though, he can be fickle."

"That's all taken care of. I got him a print of that picture from the _DanceNet_ photo shoot. I signed it and everything."

"What? Why?" Scott is horrified.

She flutters her eyelashes at him innocently. "It's what he asked for."

"You- you don't always have to give people what they want!"

She can't keep it up any longer. "I got him tickets to the National Ballet so he can impress his girlfriend."

"I'd have been totally okay with it if you'd got him the other thing either."

"Of course you would have been."

She takes his hand as they walk up his parents' driveway.

 

Scott was right. His family is sort of insane in a nice, albeit very loud, way. She knows one of his cousins already because she used to be friends with her elder sister, but the others are all new to her, even if she doesn't seem to be new to them. They treat her as if they've known her forever and they seem to know a lot about her. The only hint that her presence here is anything out of the ordinary comes when one of Scott's aunts remarks that Scott had never brought one of his "lady friends" to a family gathering before. Tessa murmurs something about dance partners or special bonds or whatever excuse they're going with so that the news doesn't get out, but his aunt just laughs in her face.

She recognises cousin Billy as the spouse to the donkey when he whips out his phone to show her photos of Delphine. Tessa doesn't know much about donkeys, but she does seem very cute for a farm animal. Not talking pig cute, but that's a high standard. Billy goes on to confide in her about how while originally theirs was a marriage of convenience (she wonders if it was really all that convenient for Delphine) he has really grown to enjoy her company.

"She doesn't talk back, or complain about my world views." She discovers that his world views are of the conspiracy kind at which point Scott whisks her away.

It's not only the Moir family in its entirety that are here, the whole of Ilderton seems to be and, oddly, her parents. Her mom and Alma have hit the wine hard and Tessa is fairly sure she saw them looking up wedding dresses on her mom's new smartphone, but she's choosing not to think about it. She goes to the kitchen to pour herself more wine (she's feeling very behind in that department) and to take a breath.

Scott tries to sneak up behind her but she's too attuned to him to be surprised when he puts his arms around her and kisses the crook of her neck.

"I wanted to make sure you hadn't run away."

She twists around so that she can see his face. "But no one can really run away, not with the tracking devices the government has implanted in us."

"I knew Billy would be my downfall. I should have rescued you from him sooner."

"Some of his points were pretty convincing. Have you ever seen the Queen and Beyoncé in the same place?"

"You are a saint."

"I really don't know how you got this lucky." She runs her finger through his hair.

"It must be my good looks and charm." He pulls her even closer to him.

She's about to kiss him when they hear footsteps and he pulls her into the pantry. She giggles but he puts his finger over her mouth. He starts tracing her lips with his finger. She tries to remember just how loud the sound of kissing is based on her encounters with Kaitlyn and Andrew being all over each other all over their apartment. She hears her mother's voice.

"I just can't help but worry about them. Have they even talked about what's going to happen when it's all over?"

"I tried to talk to Scott about it but he more or less ignored me. They'll figure it out, they have to."

Their mothers leave. Scott takes her into his arms and her chest starts to heave with these overpowering sobs. He strokes her hair and it's better because he's here but worse because soon he won't be.

After a while she says numbly, "What are we doing? Should we have let this happen?"

"Do you regret it?" His voice is so vulnerable that it creates another fissure in her heart, ready to break when the time comes. She thinks she might be the only person to see this side of him.

"No, I could never... No, I don't. I just wonder whether things would be easier if we hadn't given in."

"Do you think we would have managed that?" She considers this and shakes her head. "Isn't it better to have had this than to be left with a heap of maybes and might-have-beens?"

She agrees with him now but she doesn't know if she will in a few months time when she's back in Moscow, alone.

"It's not that I don't want to stay. I even researched the Pittsburgh Ballet Theater. But I need to go back. I, I want to go back. I want to go back and show that I am where I am because of my dancing, not because of anything or anyone else. All my life I've gone along with what people wanted. My mom wanted me to dance, Marina wanted me to go to Russia, everyone except me wanted me to do the show. It's going to hurt, and I'm going to hate it, but I have to leave."

"I wouldn't ask you to stay."

"I know you wouldn't, even though a part of me wants you to." He kisses her forehead.

"I have something to show you." He grabs her hand and leads her out of the pantry, through the kitchen and back door and out into the garden.

He points up at a tree house, "You're going first."

"What? Is it safe?"

"Would I let you go anywhere that wasn't safe? I was up there with my brothers last week so the two of us will be fine."

"Do I even want to know what the three of you were doing?"

"Reminiscing. Now, start climbing."

"Why do I have to go first?"

"So that I can catch you if you fall."

That is all she needs to make her take off her shoes and clamber up the rope ladder. The tree house is surprisingly sturdy.

Scott climbs up behind her and produces a blanket for her to sit on. He lifts up a floorboard to reveal a metal box, slightly rusted. He opens it and on top is a faded poster for the Toronto Maple Leafs.

She lifts it up. "Would we have been different if we'd stayed in Canada?"

"Yes, I don't think we'd be the people we are now. I don't think we'd be as successful as we are now."

"Do you think we'd have met? If you were playing for the Leafs and I was dancing with the National Ballet?"

"Definitely. Probably at some fancy event, I'd have said something stupid and you would have hated me but things would have worked out eventually and you'd have ended up attending my brother's birthday party getting your ear talked off by my cousin Bill. I think we'd always have met again, no matter what we were doing."

She rests her head on his shoulder. He retrieves a slim notebook from the bottom of the box.

"This is what I was looking for. My diary from when I was nine."

"You kept a diary?"

He looks slightly offended by the shock in her voice. "Writing down your thoughts is very cathartic, Tessa."

"What do you want to show me?"

He flicks through the pages until he finds what he wants. He clears his throat and reads. "Today I had another ice dance tryout. This girl could actually skate. She wasn't even that bothered by falling into the boards. I pulled her hair. She got mad. She smelled nice. We had lasagne for dinner. I have a hockey game tomorrow. P.S. Am I too young to have a girlfriend?"

He hands her the diary and she runs her finger over the yellowed page. His scrawl still looks the same.

"Maybe it didn't work out back then, and maybe now isn't exactly the right time either, but that doesn't mean that we can't be together in the future. It doesn't mean that we don't work, that we're not, how do our moms put it?"

"Meant to be," she supplies.

"Yeah, meant to be or something."

She wants to believe him, wants to be sure that they can go their separate ways and return to each other and be happy. She wants to believe him so badly.

She lowers his head to meet hers and kisses him, kisses him with a need that tree houses are not accustomed to witnessing.

"Tessa! Scott!" Does her mom have nothing better to do with her life?

"Oh, her shoes are there in front of the tree house, Kate!" Of course her partner in crime would be with her. "Scott, stop monopolising Tessa!" Alma calls.

"Do you think they're...? Tessa, what have I told you about remaining dignified in public places?"

"Well, it is a private garden..." Alma notes.

Scott is incapable of making any sort of reply to these comments as he is doubled over in a fit of laughter.

"Oh my God! Mom, we're not..." She straightens her dress. "We'll be down in a minute."

"You hurry up. They're about to cut the cake."

Their moms make their way back towards the house while they descend from the tree house.

Scott holds her hand as she steps into her shoes. "It does not surprise me that your mom had to give you a lecture about dignity in public places."

"Excuse me?"

"You get very handsy."

" _I_ get very handsy? This coming from you, Scott Moir?"

"I don't know what you're talking about."

"I... Let's go eat cake."

He puts his arm around her as they walk in and she tries to just enjoy this. They're together, and that's all that matters for now.

 

****************************

BALLET IN THE BLOOD

_That Time We Cried Our Body Weight in Tears: A Life Story_

Don't talk to us. Or do. We need to work through our issues. Tonight's show generated, in the words of the young people, ALL OF THE FEELS. It was like reading/watching _A Walk to Remember_ , _The Fault in Our Stars_ and _If I Stay_ one after the other, but with dancing and an age-appropriate man to ogle (though a lot of those actors are older than they look so maybe we're okay, plus Shane West is probably ancient by now anyway. Actually, what happened to Shane West?). The liveblog was a bit of a mess due to emotions and eating/drinking those emotions, but don't expect this to be any more coherent.

Tessa and Scott's waltz was the dance equivalent of... we're struggling to think of things perfect enough to make a good comparison. The best chocolate you've ever tasted? It was so smooth and so polished and so sweet. They danced to 'And the Waltz Goes On' which is just lovely as was Scott's topline. He has truly become a dancer and we are so proud of how far he's come. This is when the tears started. Jayne and Christopher gave the performance the tens it deserved, but Nikolai thought it was too tame and that there could have been more passion. It's a waltz, Nikolai! It's the dance you do as your first dance in front of your parents and grandparents and other respected members of the community who have just watched you get married. It is not a dance that should involve wanton groping. Get your life together, Morozov.

Then, dearly beloved, there was an interview about their second dance - a contemporary piece to Rihanna's 'Stay'. We don't know all that much about contemporary apart from what we've seen on _So You Think You Can Dance_ and its British variant _Got to Dance_ (which we prefer because of the two ridiculously attractive male judges which elegantly sums up our life choices). What we do know is that the interview and the dance that followed it reduced us to ugly crying. The kind of crying you do as a high school senior when your college boyfriend goes off to Florida for spring break and marries, MARRIES, the lifeguard he meets there. Maybe that was too specific an example. Anyway, Tessa explained in the interview that the dance was about two people who couldn't get their timing right and then, then, Scott said that they could really relate to it. Yes. That is what happened. Oh, and then there was the dance itself which was one of the most emotional thing we've ever seen in our lives. We're 99% sure Tessa was crying at the end. We're 100% sure that we were. They finally got their perfect score of tens from all three judges and then we cried some more.

Controversial opinion time: tonight's 'Stay' and last week's paso doble rank as some of the greatest ever Tessa Virtue performances. We went there. Sure, they don't have the technical brilliance of her ballet work, but that doesn't mean that they don't count as great dancing. Truly great dance is not just pretty or impressive. It tells a story, it makes you feel something, you can't forget about it, you want to watch it over and over again. Tessa and Scott are a special dance partnership creating special performances, ones that we'll be rewatching long after they've returned to their day jobs.

Tomorrow we find out in the results show if they've made it through to the grand finale. All that's left to be said is what are you still doing here? VOTE, lovelies, VOTE!!!

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"They're late. It's rude and it's unprofessional. What kind of choreographer are they?" Tessa complains as she stretches at the barre.

Scott is quite happy that whoever is meant to choreographing this dance hasn't shown up yet. He's too exhausted from their rehearsal of the quickstep-foxtrot mash-up to even contemplate ever dancing again. They have to prepare three dances for the final; one which they haven't performed yet which will be created by a choreographer, one combining two of their favourite dances, and a freestyle number where anything goes. They haven't even decided on an idea for the freestyle yet and no one has told them who will be working with on the new dance.

"I'm telling you it's going to be Nikolai. There are three judges and three finalists, do you think they're going to try hard enough to find three other people who could choreograph our routines?"

"We would get stuck with him," Tessa says glumly. "He'll probably make us pole dance or something equally horrific."

"He'll make us do something worse." He tries to put on Nikolai's accent. "It is a very avant-garde programme, lots of sexy times, I call it 'Night at the Strip Club'."

Tessa laughs and he wonders how weird it would be if he recorded it. He's terrified he's going to forget what it's like. He knows that they'll keep in contact, but it won't sound the same when it's coming over a phone or through his laptop.

"I wouldn't laugh so hard, you know he'd actually do that," pipes up Alex, the cameraman they've grown close to.

"Is it really him? Do you know?"

Alex shrugs, "They don't tell me anything. All I know is that I have to text my sister and tell her who it is as soon as I find out."

The door opens and a woman enters with her arms outstretched. "There they are! My diamonds!"

Tessa gasps and rushes towards the woman. What follows is a flurry of hugs and kisses to the cheek and lots of Russian.

"That's Marina Zueva," Alex whispers helpfully although Scott has already figured this out.

"It's a pleasure to meet you." He puts out his hand but she throws her arms around him instead. She has a very powerful grip.

"The pleasure is all mine. It was rude of me to talk in Russian, you don't understand it, do you?"

"I've been teaching him!" Tessa exclaims. "Say it, Scott!"

He tries his best at the phrase about the hippopotamus and the drum which Tessa seems to find so funny. Marina is not as amused.

"Maybe stick to dancing. You have got very good at that. I taught good instructor." She beams at Tessa who blushes. "I'm sorry I was late, the time difference confuses me. I have the perfect routine. You will be dancing the Viennese waltz."

"That's different to the, um, waltz waltz?"

Marina shoots him a glance that is eerily similar to Tessa's go-to look of disdain.

"I was just joking." Tessa pats him on the shoulder.

"I was so happy to be asked to choreograph this piece for you because I had already been thinking of music I wanted you to see you dance to." She searches through her bag. "Here it is! Fedor got me a new iPod for my birthday. He is such a kind boy, very handsome too." She sighs, "I thought he might make Tessa my daughter but it didn't work out and then she went to Canada and found some hockey boy..." Marina's voice trails off as she stabs at the screen.

Music seems to fill the room and it's strange because there's something achingly familiar about this melody but he has no idea where he has heard it before.

Marina smiles approvingly at their reaction. "It is from Mahler's Fifth Symphony. He wrote this part for his fiancée. She didn't want to meet him originally, there were too many scandals about him and every girl who wanted to sing in the opera, and then when they met they fought about a ballet, but then they were happy. Until their daughter died and then she had an affair with an architect… but no matter! It is beautiful music for a beautiful couple!"

Marina gets down to business, drilling them with the intricate movements she has envisioned. She's stricter than Tessa and she doesn't seem quite as taken with his sense of humour. Even though the choreography is probably the most challenging they've attempted so far he's picking it up surprisingly quickly. It's interesting to see Tessa as a student rather than a teacher. She and Marina bounce off each other very well and it's like he's getting a taste of her life in Moscow.

They hit their end pose in the final run-through and Marina bursts into applause. "You will be champions! Such connection, such musicality, such brilliance! Now, tell me about your other dances."

"We're doing a dance challenge where we have to put two dances together and a freestyle. The dance challenge is all planned, it has a jazzy feel. There are two foxtrot sections with a quickstep in between. The music is all by Ella Fitzgerald and Louis Armstrong - 'Dream a Little Dream of Me', 'Muskrat Ramble', and 'Cheek to Cheek'."

"Very nice. Now what about this freestyle? It is exhibition type dance, yes?"

"It isn't quite as well planned," Scott admits.

"Or planned at all," Tessa adds.

"But you only have a few days left! You are doing ballroom dances for other numbers so maybe some Latin? Something fun, not so serious. Something that celebrates the two of you."

Scott has an idea.

 

The next few days pass in a blur. He and Tessa are together almost the entire time between the endless rehearsals and the fact that's she's practically moved in with him. He's going back to Pittsburgh for a training camp a week after the final and she's leaving for Moscow on the same day so it feels a clock is ticking towards the end. There's a tacit understanding that they won't be doing long-distance as neither of them are capable of being together and so far apart all at the same time.

They're preparing to go on for their first dance of the final and he feels surprisingly calm about it. Tessa, not so much - he doesn't think he's ever seen her quite this anxious.

"I just want it to go perfectly," she frets.

"Don't worry," he says, taking her into his arms in that familiar embrace.

"What if something goes wrong?"

"No matter what, we're together, and no matter what, I love you, and no matter what, we're going to enjoy this."

He feels her relax into him and their heartbeats synch and he knows that everything will be okay.

It turns out to be more than okay. He thinks they dance better than they ever have before. The judges are equally pleased, giving them another perfect score and raving about the flashy step sequence. They barely have time to celebrate before they're whisked off to get changed for their next performance.

It's not that he's become used to the way Tessa looks, he doesn't think he could, but still, his breath is taken away when he sees her in that white dress. He considers asking her if it hurt when she fell from heaven, but he thinks she'd prefer to concentrate on getting ready for their Viennese waltz rather than having to complain about his lack of originality. As they wait to go on they hear the sound of the video being played in the studio. Marina is talking about choreographing the dance for them and how impressed she was with Scott's dancing.

"But Tessa has surprised me too. I have been watching her dance for a long, long, time now and I have never seen her like this. Some people are meant to dance together and I think Tessa and Scott are such a pair."

Tessa smiles, takes his hand, and they make their way to the dance floor. He loves this music, he loves this routine, he loves her, and he thinks that's probably blindingly obvious to anyone and everyone. He wishes it could be like this forever - just the two of them, dancing - but they only have one more dance.

He’d been a little bit shocked that Tessa and Marina had liked his plan for the freestyle so much. It's just them- the ballerina and the hockey player. Tessa had even approved his music suggestion of 'Everybody Dance Now'. He likes to think that he even helped choreograph it ,but Tessa has informed him that "grabbing my ass does not count as choreography." He is of the opinion that it adds a note of realism to the performance. His favourite part however is seeing Tessa in full ballet mode at the start. He gets what all the fuss is about now. Well, more truthfully, that's his second favourite part. His favourite part, maybe his favourite thing in the world, is dancing with her.

It feels like an eternity until they announce the winner. Tessa is shaking beside him and he runs his hand up and down her bare arm. They've changed back to their costumes from the Mahler piece because she was not having them accept their potential prize with her in a tutu and him in a Canada jersey and jeans. When their names are called out he picks her up and spins her around. She keeps repeating "We won! We won!"in this adorably excited manner. He's about to kiss her when Patrick throws his arms around them, not seeming at all disappointed with his second place finish.

There are endless interviews and congratulations until it's just the two of them left on the dance floor.

"What do we do now?" she asks.

"We should probably go to that surprise party Meryl has planned."

"Before that, would you like to dance with me?"

"I will always want to dance with you, Tessa."

So they waltz around the floor. It feels like they're the only two people left in the world and he wishes that this never had to end.

 

*************************

BLADE BROTHERS

_We Maybe Miss 'Strictly Come Dancing'_

It's a day we never thought would come but here we are- sitting down on a Saturday evening and being genuinely disappointed that we have no reality dance competition to enjoy. At the start we thought we were watching it ironically, or even if there was some serious intent it was just to provide fuel for future jokes about Moir's footwork. But then we got invested. Worse than that, we got attached. We wanted Scott and Tessa to win, we needed them to. We got into arguments with old ladies on the bus about who should be voted out next and whose costumes were the worst. Yes, we had serious conversations about fashion.

We had always had a lot of time for Scott Moir, his record speaks it for itself. Yeah, people said he was cocky and he had a bit of a rep with the ladiez, but it wasn't as if he was doing actual damage. Well, he did endanger his career by getting into a brawl, but that was for the team. Other people were not so fond of him but _Strictly_ may have changed a lot of opinions. We saw a new side to him - he was smart and funny, he rescued puppies, he could really dance.

And then there was Tessa - sweet, kind, beautiful Tessa. She walked straight into our hearts the first time we saw her on _Good Morning Canada_ and never left. She was encouraging but firm, patient but not a pushover. She brought out the best in Scott and we have an inkling that he brought out the best in her too. She made hockey fans want to take up dancing, or at least pick up a certain issue of _DanceNet_.

It was a bit like watching two people you really liked fall in love in front of your eyes. No matter what they say we remain convinced that they were doing more than just dancing together. They also brought love into the lives of others. Jack met a petite redhead over the interwebs who seems to occupy his every waking thought. One of your other bloggers took up ballroom dancing and fell for his dance partner (occupational hazard).

We're sad to see them go their separate ways. Scott is back in Pittsburgh to train with the Penguins and judging by Kaitlyn Weaver's twitter and instagram accounts Tessa has left for Moscow. Obviously we're delighted that Scott is back playing and we had run out of ballet videos of Tessa to watch so we need new ones, but still... There's just something about the way they look at each other. We kind of want them to get married and have a bunch of kids. Clearly both of them have excellent genes and these should not be wasted. Maybe someday.

We apologise for this (extended) interruption to our usual transmissions. Normal service will resume shortly.


	7. Chapter 7

What surprises Tessa the most about Moscow is that it hasn't changed. She is transformed but the city remains the same. Well, maybe not quite. It seems less vibrant than before, like the colour has been drained out. She thinks that has more to do with her than any actual difference in the city itself. Her apartment seems cold and sterile even though her friends have done their best to ready it for her return. It doesn't feel like home. She remembers the pain she was in the last time she was here and almost misses it. The pain she is in now is worse.

In Pittsburgh Scott unpacks the boxes that Tessa helped him fill. He sees her everywhere. In the obnoxiously large clock she had presented him with. In the pot which she managed to burn while boiling pasta. All over the cream Egyptian cotton sheets. It feels like he is lesser now, as if a part of him is missing. It's not as bad when he's with his teammates but here, in this apartment where Tessa has never laughed or kissed him, the feeling is overpowering. He should probably give her more time to settle in but he needs to hear her voice.

"Scott," she sounds like she is being healed and broken all at once. He is the same.

"I miss you."

"I miss you too."

 

**************************

BLADE BROTHERS

_We Haven't Forgotten about Tessa Virtue, and Neither Has A Certain Someone_

It was a great NHL season. The Pittsburgh Penguins won the Stanley Cup. Scott Moir made his triumphant return. We won money when he set a new scoring record. Life is good. But still, whenever we see Mr Moir we can't help but think of a certain ballerina who stole our hearts. We feel obligated to give you an update on her.

Tessa Virtue has had an incredibly successful comeback of her own, kicking ass and taking names at the Bolshoi Ballet. Her return performance as Giselle in the ballet of the same name which she first starred in as a teenager "cemented her status as the greatest dancer of her generation", or so we are informed by the ladies at _Ballet in the Blood_ who are much more qualified to make pronouncements on the subject than we are. They explain that what is so special about this performance is that it "combines the innocence which marked her historic first outing in the role with the maturity of a woman who has loved and lost". All we know is that we really enjoyed watching the ballet apart from the fact that it made us sad, and that Tessa is insanely good at what she does. Really, the most important thing we've gleaned from following her career recently is that judging by Russian news footage she likes to wear a Pittsburgh Penguins t-shirt to practice.

Speaking of the Pittsburgh Penguins we rather liked the video they made documenting their journey to the Stanley Cup victory. It had special effects, inspirational voiceovers, atmospheric music - the works. The insight into the methods used to motivate the team was the best part however. We were given a glimpse at 'The Board' (hockey coaches are imaginative sorts) on which the players wrote the one thing they were using to inspire/motivate them to win this season. There were a few words like 'pride' and 'revenge' but mainly it was a lot of names - parents, kids, wives/girlfriends. There was a 'Tessa' written in a very Scott Moir like scrawl.

We haven't forgotten her. He hasn't forgotten her. She hasn't forgotten him. They should go not forget each other together.

****************************

 

Tessa stares at her reflection in the airport bathroom mirror and wonders if there is anything she can do with her hair. She wanted to look sophisticated rather than _I just slept my way from Russia to the USA_. How are you even meant to look when you meet your... whatever the hell Scott is after a year apart? They are no longer dance partners. They aren't going out. As for what is going to happen between them on her visit... She hasn't been seeing anyone and she doesn't think he has either. Her regular middle of the night instagram stalking sessions of random blondes have not produced any proof although they are probably going to lead to her hair turning grey earlier than is necessary. The only good thing about the Russian-North American time difference is that Kaitlyn and Meryl are generally still awake and available to calm her down in her moments of madness. She takes a deep breath and goes to collect her luggage.

She sees him before he sees her. He looks so perfect. He's wearing a red Canada t-shirt and these tight-fitting jeans that make her ask herself if circling around him to give herself a full 360 degrees view of everything that's going on would be weird. He looks up and it's like the sun has come out. He makes his way towards her, smiling as if she's the best thing he has ever seen and, like the walking cliché that she is, she goes weak at the knees. He hugs her so tightly to him that she can feel all the new muscles that were not there when she was dancing with him. She genuinely considers divesting him of his clothes then and there in the arrivals lounge to examine these developments more thoroughly.

"Hi." He rests his forehead on hers. "How was your flight?"

"I slept through it. That's why my hair is such a mess."

"I like it," he tells her as he runs his fingers it.

She smiles this ridiculous smile which she'd be embarrassed about if she weren't so happy. It's not that she hasn't been happy in Moscow, she has - her dancing has never been better, her career is where she wants it to be, and she adores her friends, but this is something different, something special. He takes her suitcase and she wraps herself around his side as they walk to his car.

She stares at him as he drives her to his apartment without caring that this is ill-advised social behaviour.

"Tessa, I'm trying to tell you what all these places are. It might help if you were looking at them!"

"I prefer this view." She smoothes down an unruly part of his hair.

"You are very distracting."

"I'm sorry." His expression informs her that he knows she doesn't mean it.

She tells him all about Marina's new plan in order to take her mind off other things.

"So she's creating this whole new ballet just for you? That's amazing."

"She and a Canadian composer, Eric Radford. It's very exciting."

He lets her into his apartment. It's bigger than his rented one in Toronto, but strangely it doesn't feel as lived-in although she knows he's owned this place for years. She stands a polite distance away from him to prevent herself from jumping on him. She's sure it must violate some etiquette code to start tearing your host's clothes off immediately on entering their home. They should really talk first anyway.

"The weather is nice."

"It was raining outside." She hadn't noticed. He has this mischievous look in his eyes as if he knows exactly what she's thinking about. "Would you like a tour?"

He places his hand dangerously low on her waist and shows her around. After the fascinating tour of the kitchen and living room she asks, in a voice which would make her cringe if she heard an actress use it, "Where are the bedrooms?"

He leans her up against the wall. "Down that way," he motions with his head. "There's my one and then two spares."

"And where will I be sleeping?" He kisses that spot on her neck and then leaves kisses higher and higher up her neck and the side of her jaw until he reaches the corner of her lips.

"Wherever you want," he murmurs before finally placing his lips on hers. Kissing Scott after being without him for so long must be something akin to being able to see after years of blindness. She can't get enough. She pulls off his t-shirt and explores the changes that returning to hockey have made to his already impressive abs.

"Tessa," he moans after removing her cardigan, shirt and vest to find another camisole underneath, "I love you, but why are you wearing so many clothes?"

She laughs, the one that's just for him. "They advise you to wear layers when travelling."

"That makes life very difficult for me."

"I'm sure I can think of ways to make it up to you," she whispers into his ear.

It's not like she has the vastest experience and she hasn't been with anyone since the last time they were together but she feels secure in the knowledge that no one else could make her feel like this. Their bodies just fit together seamlessly as if by some grand design.

When she's kissing the marks her fingernails have left on his shoulders she notices the photo on his bedside table. It's of the two of them from the night they won _Strictly_.

"I have the same picture beside my bed too."

"Really?" He looks absolutely delighted with this piece of information.

Her stomach gurgles very loudly and a worried expression crosses his face. "I need to feed you! I can't have you starving to death."

"That would be unfortunate, especially after I travelled such a long way to get here."

"I'm going to take you some place nice."

"Like a date?"

"Well, I was more worried about keeping you from burning my kitchen utensils but if you want to look at it like that..."

She makes an odd snorting sound to convey her disgust. He kisses her softly on the cheek. "It's definitely a date."

"I should go make myself look presentable. Where's your shower?"

He points towards the ensuite and she makes her way there before throwing her head over her shoulder and asking, "What are you waiting for?"

 

A few days later she's on the phone with Meryl who is asking her a litany of questions of what she's seen and what she's been doing. Tessa could give her a very detailed explanation of what she's been doing, but there's a picture of Scott with some children in a hospital on the coffee table in front of her and she doesn't want to say those things in front of them.

"I haven't really been all that many places. We've, um, spent a lot of time in his apartment."

"Tessa Virtue! Did you travel transcontinental just to get laid?"

"Meryl!" They've done lots of other stuff too. They fed the ducks in the park. They baked brownies. They danced around his kitchen to Van Morrison.

"It's a valid question! Please tell me you've talked."

"We've talked about lots of things. We had a very interesting conversation about the lasting impact of the Arab Spring just before Scott left to get groceries," she says stiffly.

"I'm not talking about your important discussions of seismic political events. You need to talk about the two of you and where you stand and what you're going to do when you go back to Moscow."

"I know," she sighs, "I know." She hears Scott come in and unpack the shopping while Meryl gives her the gossip about the season of _Dancing with the Stars_ that she's working on in L.A. 

"You seem to be getting awfully friendly with that Ukrainian dancer - Maks, is it?"

"Firstly, it's not the type of friendliness you're implying... yet, and secondly, you're the person who just clocked up an impressive amount of air miles to reignite your romance with someone you met on such a show so no judging from you missy."

"I wasn't judging!"

"That wasn't her judging voice, Mer," Scott calls as he sits down beside her on the couch.

"So he's back. Well, I'll take that as my cue to hang up. You two have fun. Make good choices!"

"Did I scare her off?" Scott asks when she puts down the phone.

She shakes her head and he takes her chin in between his finger and thumb and stares at her as if he's trying to memorise her face. She's meant to be leaving in two days. She knows she should try to discuss all the things Meryl reminded her of but it's so hard to bring it all up when he's here and they're so happy.

"I've been thinking I could stay a few more days," she says lightly.

His lips are on hers as soon as the words are out. "Don't you need to go back? Is Marina okay with this?"

"I can take a few more days. Marina was all for it actually. She said something about how it would help my portrayal of how woman loves man or something."

"So basically you're just using me and my body to further your career."

"Pretty much."

He sighs dramatically, "The sacrifices I make for the art of dance."

He turns the picture of the sick kids so that they're facing the opposite direction and pulls her down on top of him.

 

It's the night before Tessa leaves and a thousand thoughts are running through Scott's head as she lies in his arms. He can't decide if her stay was the best or worst thing that has ever happened in his life, and he's fairly sure there's no in-between. The past two weeks have been amazing, magical even, but how is he going to cope when she leaves? He'd been doing fine before she came. It wasn't 'being with Tessa' levels of happiness, but he'd been happy all the same, playing his hockey and spending time with the boys. He thinks it might have been because he was able to categorise everything. Home was Canada and Tessa while Pittsburgh was hockey. He liked having things in their boxes.

Now though Tessa will be everywhere in his apartment. Her scent will linger in his sheets. Her laugh will haunt the walls. He won't even be able to have breakfast without thinking about the time they'd managed to get drunk at his neighbour's fancy wine tasting party (which apparently was not the point of a wine tasting party) and had ended up deciding that sex on his kitchen table would be a great idea. Tessa had then proceeded to spend three hours doing a "deep clean" of his kitchen because "that can't have been sanitary" and "Oh my God, Scott, your family are going to visit and have dinner here!"

He'd had this tiny fear that maybe what had been so great about them had been the dancing or the competing together and that they'd flounder without it. All the messages and phone calls they'd shared during their time away from each other had weakened that idea and the past weeks have proved it utterly false. Yes, he still loves dancing with her but he'd be fine without it. He just loves Tessa. He doesn't want to wake up with her not beside him. He doesn't want to have to go a few days without hearing her voice because their schedules are so busy. He wants her here with him. He needs her.

"Scott, are you awake?" She sits up and he follows suit. "I think we should talk about... well, us I guess."

He knows it's a bad idea before he says it. It's the same feeling he gets when he's about to crash into the boards, that this could be devastating and he should brace himself for the impact. There's a part of him that's screaming, telling him to stop, but out it comes.

"Don't go."

"What?"

"Stay with me."

"I can't. I have commitments, I have a career."

"I know but... Tessa, I love you. I need you."

"You can't put this on me. Do you think that this is easy for me? Do you not know that it's going to kill me to leave? But if I don't I will always regret giving up the opportunities that I had, and I'll resent you asking, and I'll resent you, and I'm not going to let that poison us." She turns on her side and buries her head in the pillow.

He hears her sobbing and wonders whether he should even try to comfort her because he's probably the last person she wants right now. He finds himself putting his arm around her anyway and at first she stiffens but then relaxes into him. So he holds her while she cries.

They barely talk the next morning. He tries to apologise but she says she doesn't want to discuss it. They drive to the airport in silence and she says goodbye with glassy eyes and a kiss to his cheek.

He sends her this endless email about how sorry he is and what an idiot he is and about how he knows how much her dancing means to her and how hard she's worked to be the best. The only response he gets is "Maybe now isn't the right time" followed five minutes later by "I love you."

 

*************************

BALLET IN THE BLOOD

_Marina Talks 'The Queen of Hearts'_

In the greatest interview we've read since Taylor Swift came out of the feminist closet Marina Zueva has an in-depth discussion about the ballet she created for Tessa Virtue. It's of course in Russian but Julie's fancy schooling has finally paid off and she has translated it for you, our much-loved readers.

It's amazing from the get go. We've previously referred to _The Queen of Hearts_ as 'Tessa travels the world breaking hearts and being awesome' and it turns out that's more or less what Marina was going for. She wanted to create a work that showed off her versatility and firmly established Tessa as "one of the all time greats". She succeeded. It's a tour de force highlighting Tessa's ability and range from the intensely classical piece danced with Evgeni Plushenko to the Spanish folk dance inspired section with Javier Fernandez. Marina confirmed that that part is being developed into a one act ballet which will feature along with The Queen of Hearts and other more established ballets in the Bolshoi repertoire when they tour North America in a few months (buy your tickets). She also loled (or rocked back and forth with laughter whichever you prefer) when asked if Tessa was romantically involved with any of the male dancers before answering with a curt "no".

The most interesting nuggets of information come when she speaks about the much-discussed opening section and we're just going to quote her comments in full. "Ah yes, it's remarkable isn't it? It's like a pas de deux with only one part but you feel like someone is there dancing with her even though she is completely alone on the stage. The way she interacts with this someone whom we never see is amazing because this is the love story that everyone is rooting for. That is why this love theme returns as her other dalliances come to an end. It is because the girl realises that these men will never mean as much to her as that first love, the one things didn't work out with. People ask me if there was meant to be a man playing this unseen role and that we couldn't find anyone good enough - but that is not the case. Tessa knows who she's dancing with, so do I. " We could maybe hazard a guess.

She was more tight-lipped, but arguably more eloquent when it came to talking about what exactly happens at the end. "That is for the audience to decide. For some the return of the love theme with those variations and Tessa dancing a more traditional solo could mean that the girl, this queen of hearts, is destined to be alone. For others it might be her making a decision to go back and find this love, this soul mate. You could interpret it one way and I another and maybe the next time we see it we might change our minds. That is the beauty of art, it can mean different things to different people." We know which way we like to think about it.

So yeah, it turns out that Marina can give a better answer than "Viktoria is great. She is so beautiful with her blonde hair and blue eyes". Who knew? We'll be back with the entire interview later and you can fight it out amongst yourselves in the comments about who this mystery man might be.

 

*****************************

BLADE BROTHERS

_Quick Update on the Movements of Moir the Machine_

So when Scott Moir announced that he was leaving the Pittsburgh Penguins we all assumed he was going to play for the Toronto Maple Leafs. They were the team he supported as a child and he'd always spoken about how it was his dream to play with them. Then we heard that there were potential lucrative contracts with the New York Rangers or the L.A. Kings. Now the rumours are that Moir wants to play in Europe. Specifically in Russia. Take from this what you will.

*****************************

 

"Goodnight, my gorgeous girls!" Tatiana calls as she leaves the dressing room she shares with Tessa and Adelina arm-in-arm with Max.

"It must be nice, having someone to go home with," Adelina sighs.

"I'm sure it is," Tessa agrees, looking at the pictures of Kaitlyn and Andrew from their last trip to Moscow which she has stuck up beside her mirror. "But you're much too young to be thinking about settling down!"

Tessa continues with the task of what she likes to refer to as 'indoor gardening'. It amounts to removing the dead flowers from the bouquets from fans which litter the dressing room.

"There's a new nightclub opening tonight. I'm going with a few friends, you should come!" Adelina grabs her arm excitedly.

"I'm getting old. I've done enough dancing for one night. Anyway, your friends are all much too young for me."

"But you need to go out and have fun, Tessa," the younger girl whines.

"I am not going to have fun with boys, it's practically a criminal offence. The last one you set me up with still had spots."

"He was stressed about his exams! That wasn't a setup, he just wanted help with his English."

Tessa is about to tell Adelina exactly what she thinks of this excuse when a knock comes at the door.

"A guest for Miss Virtue," the security guard announces. He has his awed voice on, she hopes Putin hasn't decided to visit again.

"Come in!" Adelina shouts out before Tessa even has time to open her mouth.

Her jaw drops when he walks in holding a bunch of red roses. She falls back onto her chair.

"Hi, Tessa."

"Hi, Scott," is all she can manage.

"This is a surprise." Adelina looks like she's caught between wariness of Scott's intentions and excitement about what this all might mean. "I'm Adelina Sotnikova, it is nice to meet you. I've heard a lot about you from Tessa."

"I've heard about you too. You're a wonderful dancer."

Adelina beams. "Thank you. It's all thank to Tessa really. She has been so helpful and, how do you say?" She reverts back to Russian.

"Supportive," Tessa translates.

"Yes, that's the word! People were saying not so nice things and Tessa was so kind. She's taught me so much. You know all about that! I watched the dancing show, you were great."

"Thanks."

"I'll leave you two to talk. I'm going to go... do things but if you need me just call." She shoots Tessa a meaningful glance and leaves.

It's just the two of them.

 

He hands her the flowers and she gestures for him to sit down. She smells the roses and he sees the ghost of a smile play across her face.

She looks up at him and blurts out "What are you doing here?"

That's a good question. He's realising that his plan could have done with more refining.

"I've left Pittsburgh and I'm looking for a new team to play with so I thought about Moscow. I had a medical with CSKA Moscow this morning."

"You want to play in the Russian hockey league," she says doubtfully.

"I want to be with you. I should never have asked you to stay with me. I know what you've gone through to get to where you are. I know how amazing you are, and you should be dancing with the best company. I was selfish and stupid. I'm being selfish and stupid again showing up like this. Maybe you've moved on or you don't want anything to do with me. That's completely understandable. We haven't spoken in a year, but the last thing you said to me was 'I love you' so I suppose I've been clinging on to that. We always said that it wasn't the right time, but maybe there is no designated right time, maybe we have to make it happen."

She stares at him in silence for a minute. "Can you get out of it? I mean, you haven't signed anything yet, have you?"

"No." He knows it was ridiculous to just show up here and ask her to have him back but he thinks he deserves a little bit more than a flat rejection.

"Good." Bizarrely, she starts to smile. "It would be really awkward if you were left stranded in Moscow with the only person you know having left the place."

"What?"

"We're going on tour to North America in a few weeks and I'm not coming back. I've achieved all I wanted to here and it's time to go home. Except you've made it really complicated. I presumed you were going to back to Toronto and play with the Leafs which suited me perfectly because I always intended to go back to the National Ballet, but then Charlie rings me and tells me you might be going to New York or L.A! So I've spent the last few days trying to figure out things over there and now you show up here talking about Moscow. I'm sure Marina would let me stay but I feel like this is Adelina's time to shine and I don't want to take that away from her." She's frowning as if this is all a mild annoyance rather than life-changing decisions.

"I don't understand."

"You don't understand what? I should have mentioned it to you but, like you said, we weren't talking. I think I thought it would be easier for you, or maybe for me, but I might have been wrong. I missed you so, so much and anytime I wanted to tell you something I felt like I couldn't, even the little things. I tried learning to knit because I had all this extra time on my hands and I started to make this scarf and then I realised it was for you. It's not quite finished yet, I was going to give it you whenever I showed up at wherever you decided to live but you might as well see it now."

She produces a slightly misshapen red scarf from her bag. She stands up, walks over to him, casually perches on his lap and ties the scarf around his neck.

"Tessa, you should go wherever you want. I wouldn't ask you to go to New York or L.A with me."

"You're not asking. I'm just going."

"But you want to go home and those places aren't home." She puts her finger on his lips. 

"Home is wherever you are." She places the most feather-light of kisses to his lips. "I love you."

It's as if this breaks him from the shock that has reduced him to inactivity and he pulls her as close to him as is possible and kisses her like he intends to kiss her from now until forever.

"I love you too."

"So, where do you want to call home?"

"You wanted to dance with the National Ballet and I wanted to play for the Leafs so I think we should make our childhood dreams come true. Also our moms' dreams."

"Toronto it is." She smiles and kisses him.

They break apart when the door opens and they're greeted with a high-pitched squeal and the sight of Adelina dancing about.

"I just came to get my bag! This is good, yes?" They both nod and she throws her arms around them and kisses both of their cheeks.

"Okay, I will leave you now. See you tomorrow, Tessa!" She turns when she gets to the door and asks, "Or will I?"

"Yes you will! You behave yourself!" Tessa turns back to look at him. "We should probably go too. Do you have somewhere to stay?"

"I'm in a hotel close by."

"Okay." She looks like she's about to suggest something but thinks better of it. "I'd ask you to come home with me but I think we should take it slowly this time."

"We have all the time in the world, " he assures her.

She smiles up at him as he helps her put on her coat.

"You don't have to wear the scarf you know."

"I like it," he informs her, even if this has more to do with the fact that she made it for him rather than the way it looks.

She tucks herself under his arm and they leave together.

 

Tessa is all about the taking things slowly thing. She initiated the taking things slowly thing. But after two weeks she has had enough. It's not that she hasn't loved every second of them - she has, but it's getting ridiculous. He's moved into her spare room for God's sake. It's not like they've been living like brother and sister or like Kaitlyn and Andrew before they got their act together - she's been satisfactorily reacquainted with what's going on under his shirt - but she wants more. She has needs.

"I'm going to get changed into something more comfortable," she tells him when they get back from dinner with her friends.

"Okay." He sits down on the couch and turns on that Russian soap he finds so engrossing.

She turns the TV off. "What are you doing?"

"I was going to wait for you to get changed." He looks very confused.

"Into something more comfortable!"

"Like leggings or whatever?"

"Lingerie, Scott! I am talking about lingerie!"

"Oh. Well, you could have just said that." He has the audacity to laugh as if this is all very funny.

She grabs him by the arm and pulls him into her room.

"You're sure this is what you want?"

She starts unbuttoning his shirt. "No, why would I want to go anywhere past second base with the man I'm moving back home with? What a ridiculous suggestion. I just spent some crazy amount of money buying the only decent looking underwear in Moscow for the hell of it! Do you know how hard it is to find classy lingerie here? It's all animal print and sparkles! Animal print is fine as an accent but I don't want to wear it in negligée form! And as for the diamantés… I like sparkles as much as the next ballerina but I do not want them all over my bra!"

"Tessa." He lifts her up and carries her to the bed. "As wonderful as listening to you rant about the choice of underwear in Russia is I wouldn't mind actually seeing an example."

He starts to slowly undo the buttons of her silk blouse, leaving kisses in the wake of his fingers. He removes the blouse carefully, as if he's afraid to rip the delicate material. He starts leaving kisses all over her chest and her stomach and her arms and her neck before running his hands over the flimsy red material of her bra.

"It's very pretty, but not as beautiful as the woman who's wearing it."

"You should just take it off then."

"Am I not going fast enough for you?" he smirks. "Good things come to those who wait, Tessa."

"I've waited long enough."

"I know, but we have forever," he says this so simply with the biggest smile on his face that she can't help smiling in return.

"Forever sounds good." She's thinking about how happy and grateful she is that this, the two of them being properly together, is happening for about the millionth time when he finally unclasps her bra. She doesn't do much thinking after that.

 

***************************

BLADE BROTHERS

_The One Where Everyone Moves to Toronto_

"Scott Moir is coming home." So tweeted the Toronto Maple Leafs earlier today, confirming the rumours that Moir was planning to come and play for the team he had supported as a child. There's something romantic about that - a man never forgetting the team that had first made him love the sport and remaining loyal to them after all these years.

He's not the only person returning to Toronto. The National Ballet of Canada made an announcement today too. Tessa Virtue will be joining them as a principal dancer following the end of the Bolshoi Ballet's upcoming North American tour (which we're very excited about by the way).

We'd chalk this up to a crazy coincidence (or at least the sensible part of us would) if it weren't for this interesting blog post certain friends of ours wrote yesterday. Click on the link to find out more.

 

*************************

BALLET IN THE BLOOD

_TRUE LOVE EXISTS_

It's happening. It's actually happening. The moment we've all been waiting for. The one we feared might never arrive. Tessa Virtue and Scott Moir - reunited. More than reunited, an official couple. Remember this day.

It started off so innocuously. We were just casually going along with our everyday lives when Kaitlyn Weaver and Andrew Pojé sent out a tweet that read "Warning all our friends that none of the bridesmaids at the wedding are single." We sat in silence. This meant that Tessa, Kaitlyn's chief bridesmaid, was clearly attached. But to whom? Could we dare to dream after all this time? Julie, the youngest and bravest of us, rushed to instagram while we hid behind throw cushions. She creeped on Kaitlyn and Andrew - nothing. Tatiana Volosozhar and Maxim Trankov - pictures of their dog. Then she turned to Adelina Sotnikova. Adelina did not let us down. There, in some 'artistic' filter, were Tessa and Scott. He was lifting her up and their foreheads were touching. If you had any doubts about what could possibly be going on between them the caption said it all. "True love exists! These two give me hope <3" Us too, baby ballerina. We then danced and screamed and cried and danced some more. You read it here first, folks: true love exists.

**************************

 

"I love your family, you know I do, but I don't understand why they insisted that we have a party for us being back in Canada for a year in their house rather than ours. I don't really get why we need a party for that at all. Scott, are you even listening to a word I'm saying?" He seems so distracted.

"Sorry, just concentrating on the road!" He parks right in front of his parents' house.

"Are we early? Where is everyone?" She knocks on the door and no one answers.

"Maybe they're not here yet." He doesn't seem very surprised by this. "We should go wait in the tree house."

"The tree house? What's wrong with your car?"

"I have something to show you." He takes her hand and she follows him even if she is slightly worried about what exactly is going on.

"Ladies first," he bows.

"I'm not buying it. This isn't about my safety, you're just using it as a chance to check me out."

"You're so suspicious of my pure and noble intentions." He rather impurely runs his hands all the way down the back of her dress.

She kisses him quickly before nimbly making her way up the ladder. "Has someone been spring cleaning? There's a jug with flowers here."

He shrugs. "I was doing some tidying up when I helped Dad with the gardening last weekend."

This is all very weird. "So, what do you have to show me?"

He reaches for the old metal box. "As you know, I kept all the things that were special to me as a kid in this box."

"Like your diary."

"Yes, and I've added to it over the years." He opens up the box and rifles through it. "There's the first Canada jersey that I earned. Here's a picture of us dancing together on _Strictly_. This is the programme from that night I went to see you in Moscow. I've been keeping something special for you in it."

He lifts out a ring box.

"Yes." The word just comes tumbling out of her mouth.

"So you like the new earrings I got you?"

She covers her face with her hands only to hear him laughing.

"Scott Moir, did you just pretend you weren't going to propose to me?! You can't do that to someone!"

"Sorry, it was just... I hadn't even asked you. I've been really nervous about this for weeks. I'm going to do it properly now." He tries to get down on one knee but nearly falls over.

She laughs and he frowns at her. "I'll be serious now, I promise. You go ahead."

He opens the box and she's relieved that it does contain a ring, a stunning diamond. "Tessa, will you marry me?"

She considers making him sweat it out after what he just put her through, but she really wants to put the ring on so she leans over, kisses him and says, "Yes."

He slips the ring on. It's a perfect fit.

"Wait, is there really a party?"

"No, I just thought you'd want to look nice. My parents will be here soon and they'll probably want to take pictures."

"I was wondering if you'd already arranged the engagement party."

He goes white."No! What if you'd said no?"

"Did you really think I was going to say no? You can be such an idiot."

"I'm your idiot now."

"I think you've been mine for quite some time now." He pulls her close to him and kisses her.

"Scott! Are you here?" Alma shouts. "Kate and I came back from book club and your car is outside. Where are you?"

"Is she drunk?" Scott whispers.

"They were at book club. Of course they're drunk."

"Tessa! Are you here too?"

She sticks her head out the window. "We're in the tree house."

"What are you doing up there? Do I even want to know?"

"Nothing out of the ordinary. Just getting engaged."

Kate and Alma promptly burst into tears while simultaneously jumping up and down.

"So the madness begins," Scott deadpans.

"They're just happy."

"Me too." He kisses her cheek and she closes her eyes and thinks of how far they've come.

 

***************************

BALLET IN THE BLOOD

_The National Ballet of Canada is the Best_

We just love them. They're all so talented and attractive and fun and they get on so well together. It makes for great press conferences. We're not entirely sure what the reason for the latest press conference was. We assume it was to promote their summer season, but it ended up being an extended storytelling session about how Tessa Virtue was adjusting to life as an engaged woman. We have few complaints about this turn of events.

It all started when she had to ask a reporter to repeat a question because she was daydreaming while staring at her engagement ring (SO PRETTY). Then Kurt Browning said that this was a daily occurrence and told a story about how Tessa had refused to be parted from the ring during rehearsals and had ended up almost wearing it onstage one night until someone had reminded her that swans don't wear rings. We wouldn't take it off either.

The best part came however when our favourite little ballet couple Alexandra Paul and Mitch Islam (we're mildly obsessed, they're just so cute and have such pretty lines!) were so kind as to re-enact the Virtue- Moir proposal from what Scott and Tessa had told them. It happened in a tree house? He tried to make it seem like he was giving her earrings instead? We couldn't quite make out what happened because Alex and Mitch were laughing too hard (adorable angels that they are) but it was hilarious nonetheless. Tessa's response to all this was magnificent, she just shrugged and said that she hoped Mitch's proposal to Alex would be good enough to warrant a dramatic reinterpretation. Then they both went super red.

Tessa got asked a lot of questions about the wedding and we learned that it's "smallish" and even though she loved all the wedding dresses she was modelling in that bridal photo shoot they did she won't be wearing one of those on her big day. The most adorable moment of the day came when someone asked her if she was nervous about getting married. She looked utterly confused and then said, "Not at all. I'm just really excited for everything that’s ahead of us. We're very lucky. I do feel grateful for the fact that we do have one another because I think people search their whole lives for someone that special and we have that." We'd like to point out (again) that we called this from the first time we saw them together. Meant to be.

You won't be hearing much from us in the next few days because we have our own ballet/hockey nuptials to take part in. Thank you, Tessa and Scott, for helping two people find their other halves. We wish our little Julie and that hockey boy Jack, who we're grown rather fond of, all the happiness in the world.

****************************

 

"You're late." He can't keep the glee out of his voice as she walks into the dance studio, the same one they first met in.

"You try getting bridesmaids to agree to things! It's a nightmare. Kaitlyn is the only sane one and she's too busy trying to keep the peace to get anything organised. Thank God Meryl is capable of waging a war against Russian ballerinas over whether hair should be up or down and planning events at the same time or I don't know where I'd be." She throws her arms around him. "You should be happy that I really love you or else this would be more trouble than it's worth."

"Maybe we should just elope," he suggests as he rubs her back.

"Will you drive me to Vegas?" She sounds quite serious.

"If that's what you want."

"Our moms would kill us."

"I'd protect you." She lifts her head from where it's been resting on his chest and kisses him.

"We should probably start rehearsing," he reminds her when her hands start to wander.

"I don't know why we have to practise this much for our first dance."

"Is it such a bad thing that I want to dance with my fiancée?"

"No," she smiles up at him as she settles into the familiar dance hold, "will you still dance with me when I'm your wife?"

"We'll be dancing together forever."

And that is just what they do.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you all so much for such a warm welcome back for an old V/M fic! I'm quite busy with work but am thinking of uploading another story from 2014 and then hoping to maybe write some drabbles before tacking Chapter Four of Out of the Woods...
> 
> I just got a tumblr https://iwantthemtostay.tumblr.com/ if people would like to drop me some prompts or come chat about these two :)


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